Not Who We Used To Be
by Where Is Your King Mickey Now
Summary: Semi-AU. Isa never lost his heart. Now ten years have passed since Lea lost his, and Isa's life is turned upside-down when a chance meeting with Axel puts him in the Organization's sights. Older!Isa/Axel.
1. Isa

Evening! After I posted "Missing the Sun," there seemed to be some interest in a continuation to the story. As it was, that drabble was meant as a prologue to a larger story, and so here it is! Enjoy!

This fic is a collaborative effort between myself, Ocean's Tale, nerdforsale, and http : / / chaosxthemailman . tumblr . com / (who does not have an ffnet account). Thank you!

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In a small control room on a broken world, a blue-haired man knelt, examining a series of wires. Hollow Bastion's defense system looked to be in good working order, but one could never be too careful. The people of this world had only started to come trickling back recently, and the defense system was instrumental in keeping them safe. Without it, the common townsfolk would be helpless, as the man, Isa, knew all too well.

The broken world on which Isa lived had once been his home; a radiant garden of warm homes and sweeping vistas, overlooked by a majestic castle. All that had changed when the Darkness came. Isa still had nightmares about that night; he had worked in Cid's shop then, as a seventeen-year old boy. The only patrons at the time had been three children, one boy who loved looking at the gummi parts on Cid's walls, and two girls who tagged along with the boy wherever he went.

Only those three had been there with he and Cid when they barricaded the door against the pressing swarm of Heartless. Only they had made it to the completed ship in the basement of Cid's shop. Only those three and Cid would have escaped, if Isa had had his way.

"_No! No, I'm staying to fight! I'm staying!"_

"_Are you crazy? That's suicide, Isa!"_

"_I don't care! Those things killed Lea! Lea—"_

"_Lea would want you to live! Now get in the goddamn ship!"_

Cid had grabbed his shirt and thrown him bodily into the ship, or else Isa wouldn't be in Hollow Bastion that day nine years later, maintaining the mechanism that kept the townsfolk safe from the darkness that had once destroyed their lives.

Isa stood, wiping some sweat from his brow. Everything was in order, so it was time to head back to headquarters. He frowned lightly, the x-shaped scar between his eyes wrinkling as he did.

_'Perhaps if we'd had these back then, things would be different,' _he thought to himself. _'But...it still wouldn't have saved Lea.'_

Lea...Isa paused as his stroll took him through the Bailey, looking through the hole in the wall at the castle in the distance. His best friend had died on the steps of that castle, months before the Darkness had come. Lea had been the first casualty. It had been so sudden, too; the scene was burned forever in Isa's mind. His friend, twenty feet away, calling to Isa, unaware of the darkness rising at his feet. Isa's voice, crying out a warning as the Shadows leapt. Lea's startled expression as he disappearing under a mass of black, seething bodies. Diving into that mass, trying to reach him, and white-hot agony erupting across Isa's face before his head struck the pavement and everything went black.

He had been told after the fact that the guards had been too late to save Lea. Isa would never forget that he had been too late and too weak as well. That failure haunted him, and drove him to protect the people still left behind in his own way. Isa moved on from the Bailey, considering the boy he and his comrades had only recently remembered. He wondered if that boy had managed to save his friends. Isa sincerely hoped so.

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The boy in question wasn't so far off. Footsteps sounded as three people walked through the streets of a recovering Hollow Bastion. It had been an odd experience, returning to Hollow Bastion. For everyone else, it had been over a year since the events involving Ansem and the Princesses of Heart. But for Sora, who had been asleep that whole year, it literally felt like just yesterday that he had been fighting a possessed Riku in the ruined castle.

Riku.

Dammit. He had him. Sora had found Riku, then let him slip away into the darkness. Now he had to go hunting all over the worlds again to try and find him. And he wasn't going to let Riku get away this time, even if Sora had to slog through the realm of darkness himself to drag him back.

Sora kicked at a small chunk of rubble and sent it clattering across the road. But that was a very long way into the future. No sense worrying about it right now, not on this world. And- Sora grinned widely at this thought- especially not when he was on his way to go see his friends from Traverse Town.

Speaking of which, it looked like that Donald, Goofy and himself had just found the house Yuffie had been telling them about. Sora picked up his pace and hurried across the courtyard. He didn't even bother to knock before he rushed through the door.

Just as Sora entered the house, Isa rounded the corner, coming from the Bailey. He was just in time to see the door swinging shut behind the Keybearer. Isa blinked, then smiled softly at himself, stepping through the door just a few paces behind Sora. He shut the door quietly behind him. It seemed Squall (he would always be Squall to Isa, no matter what he insisted on calling himself since the fall of their home) was in the midst of explaining their sudden memory return to Sora. Isa stayed quiet while Squall finished his explanation; Sora didn't seem to be taking their forgetting him very well. He smirked a bit and let out a brief, amused "hmph" in response to the boy's irritation.

"If you don't talk to your friends for a year, you can't be surprised if they don't remember you. Although, I suppose you wouldn't think anyone could forget a character like you." Sora spun around, surprised. He hadn't even heard Isa come in. He gave him a wide grin.

"Hey, Isa!" he greeted with his usual cheer.

Isa nodded, then got to the crux of his thoughts.

"Did you manage to help your friends?"

Sora's face fell almost immediately "Well.. we were able to help Kairi. But Riku... We're still trying to find him." Of course, it's hard to find someone when you don't know where on any number of worlds they could possibly be. Isa scowled, and before he could stop himself, he blurted out,

"You let us know if there's anything we can do to help."

...well. That was a bit embarrassing. Aerith and Cid were giving him looks of pity, while Squall just looked awkward. There was a long, tense pause, before Squall cleared his throat and broke the silence.

"Well, before that, Sora, there's actually something we need your help with. We've got a bit of a...problem, that calls for your skill set. Why don't you go with Isa to the Bailey? He'll show you what I mean."

Isa was grateful for the excuse to escape. "I'll go on ahead, meet me there," he said to Sora, before hastily heading out the door.

There was a long moment of silence in the room after Isa left. The tension was palpable enough that even Sora could feel it. He tried to shake off the last of the awkward atmosphere; by asking about it. Because he was curious about that moment, and the only way to find out what was up with that was to ask. "So, uh, that was awkward. What was that about?"

The remaining members of the household exchanged a look. It took a bit, but Leon finally started to explain. "Isa...had a friend, years back before Hollow Bastion fell. Lea and Isa were close." Leon paused and glanced at Sora. "Probably as close as you and Riku are."

Oh, so that was it. But- "Wait, 'had'? What happened to this Lea?"

Aerith said softly. "Lea died...about a year before the darkness overran the world."

"... Oh." Sora's voice was very quiet. "How... what happened?"

"That's something you should ask Isa, not us." Cid interjected.

He did have a point. But the thought of asking about Isa's dead best friend felt... weird. What if he didn't want to talk about it? Well. He'd just have to think about it. Maybe he could ask Isa for details later. They'd have time to get reacquainted after not seeing each other for a year. Sora turned torwards the door, but only made it a few steps before Aerith spoke up.

"Wait, Sora! Before you go, we have something for you." Aerith handed the Keybearer a shiny purple card made from plastic. "Leon came up with these, and we wanted to give you one."

Sora turned the card over in his hand. One side had the pale silhouette of a castle surrounded by a uniform purple. On the other, Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee Honorary Member had been printed in bold white letters, with a white box underneath it where someone had written his name. A membership card? That was actually a pretty cool idea! "Hey, thanks!"

Leon just gave that half-smile of his. "You should get over to Bailey now. Isa's probably waiting."

Sora nodded, pausing barely long enough to call "See you guys later!" before he dashed out the door. Forget about asking directions.

... Wait. Where was the Bailey? Huh. Oh well. It couldn't be that hard to find. Just look for the place with the guy with the blue hair.

Needless to say, it took Sora a bit longer then expected to find the Bailey. But not by much. With the Bailey in sight, Sora hurried the last bit of the distance and slowed to a stop next to Isa. The blue-haired man had been leaning against the wall, arms crossed and looking off towards the castle, but he looked up as Sora approached. He smirked softly. Sora really was a lot like...well. Down to business.

"So. Decided to join me after all, hmm?"

"Sorry about the wait." Sora grinned sheepishly.

Isa stood up away from the wall. "I don't suppose Squall's filled you in on our mission statement?" At Sora's perplexed look, his shook his head. "Of course not. Well, I had best fill you in, then."

Isa stepped over to the window, leaning on it to gaze out. "The original name of this world was Radiant Garden. It was a rather accurate title, once. We would like to restore this world to something worthy of that name. But...there is a bit of a problem."

Isa pointed to the seething mass of darkness surrounding the castle, supressing a shudder of revulsion. "The Heartless." As he spoke the word, his voice dropped to a pitch Sora would not have heard before. It was bitter and vicious, and his eyes narrowed as he stared out at the monsters in the distance.

It was an absolute sea of Heartless. That was the only thing Sora could think of to describe what he saw around the castle, and it sent a shiver down his spine. What was so interesting, so powerful in that castle that could attract this many Heartless? On second thought, he wasn't sure that he wanted to know. But wherever there was massive amounts of Heartless was where he needed to be.

The drop in Isa's voice wasn't lost on the Keybearer. It was possible that he just hated the Heartless for making him lose his world for nine long years. But...

_'As close as Riku and I, huh?'_

"So, uh... What happened to Lea?"

Lea's name being brought up, and from Sora of all people, was so unexpected that Isa was left completely blindsided, his breath catching audibly in his throat. The fingers of one hand tightened into a fist against the rock sill he was leaning against, the other hand involuntarily rising to touch his scar. It took him a moment to realize Sora was still talking.

"Leon and the others told that he died, but they... they wouldn't tell me any details," Sora continued, not daring to look over and see Isa's reaction to his question. "Cid said I should ask you. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." He hurriedly added on to the end.

Should Isa tell him? Cid and the others never brought Lea up around him, and he avoided the subject like the plague. But...something about Sora made people want to trust him with their problems. And he so reminded Isa of his lost friend...he made his decision.

"...it was the Heartless." he said after a long moment. He kept his gaze directed at the castle as he spoke. "We...it was sudden. He'd...gotten a bit ahead of me down the castle steps, so when they appeared, I...was too far away." He scowled, struggling to keep his voice level. "...They dragged him down before he even knew they were there. I couldn't reach him...I woke up in the hospital later, with this scar and no Lea." Isa's voice cracked on his friend's name. It had been so long since he had spoken it out loud. He wasn't sure why he was trusting Sora with this; but he guessed that was why Sora was the Keybearer.

"...At the time, we didn't know what they were or where they came from. We found out later that they came from inside the castle." His scowl deepened, and he muttered more to himself than Sora. "Ansem, that callous bastard...saying how he "felt responsible" for what happened to-...as though it wasn't his fault."

Sora listened to what Isa said with increasing distress. His friend, standing just out of reach and with nothing he could do to save him?

Riku standing on the other side of those huge, white doors with the Heartless and pure darkness bearing down on him and King Mickey. Riku, refusing to cross to the other side because he was needed on that side to help the King, no matter how much Sora pleaded. Riku, disappearing from sight as the doors closed, then faded into nothing, taking with it all traces of the King and-

Sora's hands went from resting on the sill to gripping it tightly. "... I'm sorry, Isa."

Ansem again. Nothing good ever seemed to happen when that name, that _person_ showed up. First with Lea, then with Riku. If this was the world that Ansem was from, maybe he could finally get some answers on him.

There was a long moment of silence, as each contemplated their own thoughts. Then movement down in the canyon caught Isa's eye, snapping him out of his funk. He glanced over to see what was down there, then turned to point down at the sinuous white monsters moving towards the castle.

"_That_ is our other problem. I don't suppose you know what those are?"

Sora leaned forward a bit to get a better look at the things Isa pointed out. Not that doing so helped much, seeing how far away the two of them were, but it didn't matter. He was still able to recognize the creatures.

"Oh, those." He looked back over at Is. "Yen Sid told me about them." Oh man. What had the old wizard said about the Nobodies? "They're called Nobodies. If a heart taken by a Heartless is strong enough, sometimes they leave behind a Nobody. Heartless monsters that can't feel emotion. But those things," he gestured at the Dusk, "aren't all that tough. It's Organization XIII we need to be careful of. They're the real danger."

A voice called out from the stairwell behind the Bailey.

"You rang?"

Isa snatched up the claymore he'd leaned against the wall behind him. A close call had taught him never to have his weapon out of reach, and he was glad for that caution now. Sora whirled on the spot and dashed out to the stairwell. He stopped suddenly just past the arch, looking around to find where exactly the voice came from.

"He's been making excellent progress, hasn't he?"

"Yes. I think this calls for a test."

Right as Sora started to make for the stairs to try and locate those voices, several Dusks appeared. They slipped by him, heading for the Bailey. Sora hesitated, torn between trying to find the voices and keeping the Nobodies from getting past the Bailey.

No, Isa could handle a few Dusks. If those voices were who Sora thought they were, he'd have to save his strength in case it came down to a fight.

"Letting your friend do the fighting for you? That's not very heroic."

Up on a square-ish chunk of stone left from some restoration project, darkness billowed up for a moment before vanishing, leaving behind a figure cloaked in black. The figure lifted his arms, and a moment later five other black-clad people appeared.

Sora glared up at them, then adjusted his posture, one hand ready to call the keyblade if he needed it. "You must be that Organization XIII I've heard so much about."

A chorus of laughter erupted from the hooded men in response to Sora's comment. But one of their numbers stayed silent.

Behind a black hood, there lay a devilish grin. There he was, the Keybearer. And the key to getting Roxas back.

"What a shame, I expected more from the Keyblade Master," a deep voice echoed from the roof tops. The hooded men were suddenly enveloped in darkness, whisking them away in an instant.

"What'd you mean by- hey!"

Before he had even finished his sentence, they were gone; hidden and carried off by that swirling darkness. Sora tensed, then dashed towards the stairs. They couldn't have gone far, right? As long as they were still nearby he could find them and confront them. End all of this right now, before anything really bad happened.

Never mind the fact that there were six of them and one of him. He'd figure something out. He had to.

Sora had to stop abruptly about halfway to the stairs to keep from running straight into the darkness that suddenly billowed up in front of him.

"Hey hey, where's the fire?" the hooded man muttered, stepping out of the darkness and into Sora's path. "Well isn't this a pleasure. The Keyblade Master, heh." He moved his hands to his hips and grinned behind his hood. There was no way this brown haired boy would be able to understand his intentions. But in this Nobody there was a flame, he was set to take back what he lost. Behind his hood, that burning smile twisted into a grimace. Pain? No he wouldn't have it, he couldn't stand tricking himself anymore.

Roxas, that name didn't sound anything like Isa. But bygones be bygones, this shell didn't have time for nostalgia. But what to do, what to do? He hadn't really thought too hard about confronting Sora, but it couldn't hurt to try.

"The name's Axel. Got it memorized?" he offered, trying to dig for any sign of his friend.

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While Sora had barreled out to confront the Organization, Isa had momentarily hung back. He needed to make sure the defense system had closed the gates out of the Bailey, protecting the town. Before Isa could rejoin Sora on the landing, he found himself needing to defend the gate from an onslaught of Dusks.

He had enough reach to ward off any Nobodies easily, so he stationed himself in front of the gates, destroying any Nobody that wandered too close with a single, powerful strike. All the while he kept an ear on the conversation going on outside. Most of it was schoolyard taunting, barely worth listening to.

Then, Isa heard a phrase that made his blood run cold.

'Got it memorized?' He only knew one person who had ever said that. And that voice...it couldn't be. It couldn't.

Isa smashed through the Dusks in front of him, annihilating them utterly. He had no time to play with them. He dove forward, bursting out onto the stair landing, his heart pounding in his chest. He knew it couldn't be, but he couldn't stop himself from crying out to the lanky, hooded man.

_"Lea!"_


	2. Meeting You Again

A/N: 'Evening, everyone! Last chapter was just for set-up, so this chapter will be a bit longer. Incidentally, this chapter starts the Isa/Axel shippy stuff, so if that's not your bag, just a warning.

Enjoy!

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"_Lea!_"

Axel turned to see a blue haired man barreling onto the landing. "Haven't heard that one in awhile."

Isa's heart skipped a beat. Hadn't heard...? It had to be a coincidence. Had to. Lea was dead, he knew that. Why was he torturing himself like this? He was only going to be disappointed, and it would be like losing Lea all over again. He knew that, and yet this man...his voice, and the way he moved, the way he spoke...Isa had to know. He stepped between Sora and the black-clad man, frowning deeply.

"...Show me your face," he demanded, only keeping his voice level thanks to years of self-discipline. But it was a close thing.

The Nobody turned to get a better look at their new guest. Blue hair, a wicked looking claymore, an X-shaped scar, and those piercing blue eyes.

No, it couldn't be. He was just imagining things. He dismissed the thoughts as soon as they tried to flood in, casually waving a hand at the newcomer.

"Oh, is this your buddy? Well I'm kind of busy right now, we can play later." The words rolled out smoothly.

The dismissive response was too much for Isa.

"TAKE OFF THE GODDAMN HOOD! _LEA!_"

_'Please. Please, let it be him.'_ More than anything, Isa just wanted to see Lea's smile one more time. Even if he didn't remember him.

So Axel _had_ heard correctly. But this man shouting back at him, no. It couldn't be true.

The hooded figure looked back at Sora, who seemed just as confused as he was. So he just shrugged. Play it cool. He wasn't sure who this man was, but he didn't appreciate him interrupting his conversation. Not when it was between Axel and getting his friend back. But something just didn't feel right.

"Well if you're so intent on it," he slipped his hood back, bright red spikes, violet tattoos, and a confident grin. His bright green eyes locked with this new man's stern glare.

Axel, the Flurry of Dancing Flames.

"I don't think we've been introduced-" the redhead began.

A loud crash cut the Nobody off mid-sentence. The claymore had slipped from Isa's fingers, clattering against the ground.

No.

No.

Oh, god, it was Lea. It was Lea. Isa couldn't breathe. His chest felt so tight, and he thought his eyes might fall from his skull. Those eyes. That _grin_. Suddenly Isa was 16 again, and instead of rubble he was surrounded by fountains and flower beds, and he had never needed a weapon because Radiant Garden was _safe_, and Lea was there and smiling and everything was right with the world.

Then the moment passed, and Isa realized he was moving forward, his hands stretching out towards the redhead, his claymore left forgotten on the cobbled stones. He ignored Axel's protests, cupping his face in both hands. He drew in a shuddering breath. It wasn't an illusion, or an apparition. Lea was really here. He was warm, and solid, and here. Isa's face twisted, and he pressed his forehead to Axel's as he fought to control himself. He would not cry. He would not.

"See...? I told you I could never forget you..." he hissed in a strangled voice, trying to smile and failing, so that his face contorted into a rictus grin. "...Believe me, I tried all the time."

Nearby, Sora ground his teeth, tensed and ready to attack Axel at a moment's notice. Oh dammit, why was Isa acting like this? He had just told him that Nobodies were dangerous, especially the Organization, for crying out loud!

... Wait. He said Lea.

Isa had said that Lea was attacked by Heartless. If Lea had been strong enough, then a Nobody would have been created. And if his heart was strong enough, maybe that Nobody would have been humanoid...

"Isa," Sora said, calmly as he could. "back off. That isn't Lea. Maybe he was, once, a long time ago, but not anymore. He's a Nobody, he's extremely _dangerous,_ and you're too close."

"...Isa?"

This wasn't part of the plan. Axel felt cold hands on his face, blue eyes that told a thousand stories. Memories came flooding in but-

"The kid's right. The name's Axel now, comes with being a Nobody," he said as he removed Isa's hands from his face, placing Isa's hands back to his own heart, "Get that memorized."

How long had it been, Axel wondered? This was all too sudden. Axel was here to get Roxas back, to salvage what friendship he had left. But a Nobody shouldn't be able to feel this way. A Nobody shouldn't be able to feel at all. Still there was a pang where Axel's heart should be.

"Sorry to do this to yah. Maybe you'll understand," he snapped his fingers, hopping back to gain some distance as the Nobodies were summoned. "I just don't have the heart," he muttered, "Have fun kid, don't go dying on me now!"

With that, the cloaked man took the opportunity to run for it. Shit shit shit, so much for having this under control.

Oh no. Isa did NOT think so. He was _not_ letting Lea get away that easily. Isa grasped for his claymore, and had a brief moment of panic when he realized he'd dropped it. He lunged for the sword, tucking into a roll and coming up swinging. A single swing cleared the way forward, and he dashed after the Nobody as fast as his legs would carry him. Sora could handle the rest; he needed to catch Lea. He had too much to say to him, too much he needed to ask, to let him get away now.

Lea!" he yelled at his retreating back. "Wait!"

For a brief flash of a second, something deep in Sora's heart ached to see the Nobody running away.

Then he had summoned the Keyblade and was slashing at Nobodies, only to have Isa create an opening that lasted just long enough for him to slip past the Nobodies and after Axel. "Isa!"

_Dammit!_ Well this confrontation had gotten bad, and fast. "Isa! Don't go after him!"

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Axel darted through the hallway, his mind racing faster than his footsteps would carry him.

This wasn't supposed to happen, not like this. He remembered that face, Isa's face. But he didn't remember tears, save for his final moments. The last day he ever felt anything, and it was swamped with nothing but regret. Lea wasn't himself anymore, just a walking shell of his former self. But seeing this man's face, well.

It was something he tried his best to forget.

He wasn't meant to feel this, he wasn't even supposed to exist. Axel let out a groan of frustration as he reached the end of the hallway, turning around to hear footsteps that weren't his own. Isa slowed to a stop as the hallway dead-ended, blocking the way out.

"Just back off, Isa. You're better off forgetting this even happened," Axel turned to smile faintly. He'd rather Isa remembered Lea, not Axel. Not this monster he'd turned into.

Axel opened a portal, but paused. He looked up for a moment, turning again to meet Isa's eyes.

"Glad to see you're alive and well though. Be careful," Axel pointed between his own eyes, "I- Lea was supposed to be the reckless one, -better not have rubbed off on you."

But Isa lunged forward, snagging at Axel's wrist and holding onto it as tight as he could. Back off? No way. He wasn't about to stand by and watch while Lea faded away from him again. His face was inches from the Nobody's, and his eyes bored into the redhead's.

"You are not running away from me that easily. I've got too much to say to you, and I've waited too long to say it."

The redhead's breathing became shallow, inches from a seething Isa. Axel looked to the portal in vain. He'd never hear the end of it if he made a scene, but he wasn't getting out of this one without a few scratches. Isa was always so bossy, some things never change. A small chuckle escaped from the Nobody.

"Well then let's hear it," Flames spiraled around his hands, summoning his trademark weapons.

Isa was startled enough by the flames to release his grip on Lea's wrist and step back. That was definitely new. And those weapons had appeared out of thin air. Was that a Nobody thing? That actually seemed pretty convenient; Isa tossed away that thought as soon as it crossed his mind. Still, a part of him managed to be amused that Lea's weapons were basically giant, spiked frisbees. How like him.

The amusement fell away when Axel raised his chakrams.

"Come on, I wanna catch up too. I've gotta warn you though, it might sting a little."

Isa scowled.

"I don't want to fight you, Lea." He stepped towards the Nobody again, totally fearless. So, this is what Lea wanted to do? Well, he had never beaten Isa before. Maybe Lea had learned a few tricks, but Isa was sure he could subdue him without hurting him. Still, he didn't want to have to do even that much.

"I just want to talk." He scowled, clamping down tight on his emotions.

"Then TALK," Axel flinged a chakram past Isa's head, flames whirled into the wall behind him, only to reappear in his hand. The chakram passed close enough to Isa's head to ruffle his hair, but the blue-haired man didn't even flinch.

"C'mon, you're not gonna fight back? Yer making this too easy," The Nobody glared at the man across from him, "You shoulda listened to the Keyblade, I'm bad news. A Nobody, that means no heart."

Isa stepped forward towards Axel.

"I don't care about that one bit, Lea. So you don't have a heart now; I'll get it back for you." And he meant it.

His scowl shifted into a frown. There was so much he wanted to know. The question that had haunted him the most these last ten years refused to go unasked. He stopped a few feet from the Nobody.

"Did you know that I loved you? When you died?"

Love?

Axel immediately dropped his weapons.

What was he trying to do? No, he couldn't have any ulterior motives. This was Isa, stoic and sarcastic.

The boy who laughed when Lea made a fool of himself.  
>Turned his nose when Lea dug holes for himself.<br>Lectured him when Lea just needed a shoulder to cry on.  
>But was always there with a kind word, when nobody's eyes were on them.<p>

Well, this was the man standing before him now. Promising him a heart, proclaiming love?

He wasn't sure what to say. What was he supposed to say? Of course he loved him, back when he could. He spent every moment thinking about that...that asshole. Axel's eyes darted around, trying to focus on something that wasn't Isa. No luck.

"You idiot," he mumbled, trying not to make eye contact. He was only a few feet from Isa, but it was way too far. "I _loved_ you too," his words were barely audible. As soon as it escaped his lips he felt himself shaking, his hands gripping his head in pain. "But just look at me," he barely spat out, "I've been working on this whole heart business for 10 years, what makes you think you can fix it huh? What's your genius plan?"

Isa shook his head in response to his question, frowning.

"I don't know. I'll need time to think about it. But I'll think of something."

From the sound of Lea's voice, Isa couldn't believe he didn't have feelings. He knew what his friend's voice sounded like, when he was scared and confused. That tone, and the way Lea kept his eyes averted, broke something in Isa. He moved forward to wrap his arms around the Nobody. Idly he noted that Lea had grown taller than him, and that he was far too thin, as if he hadn't had a good meal since Isa had last seen him. None of that was important, though. He reached a hand up to the back of Lea's head.

"I missed you so much..."

Before Axel could even register Isa's words he was suddenly so close. When did Axel's arms get wrapped around this man, his fingers tangled in blue hair? His head rested on Isa's as he buried into the cloaked man's shoulders.

"Yeah, I missed you too," he responded without thinking. Did he really, though? Axel wasn't sure. This was all too confusing for the Nobody, but somewhere inside he felt something.

_"But I figure... if there is something in there- inside us- then we'd feel it, wouldn't we?"_

Roxas. Shit. Axel had made a promise, he couldn't just abandon his friend but- Well, he supposed things were meant to keep getting complicated from the second Roxas left the Organization. Axel pulled away from the embrace, keeping his arms gripped on Isa's shoulders. He couldn't avoid the pain written all over his face. Two lost friends, and here they were. But he couldn't have them because he didn't have a _goddamn heart_.

Isa frowned, watching at Axel's face. It looked like he wanted to say something, and Isa waited. But-

There was a cry from behind him and a blast of cold air went whistling past his head, and suddenly Lea was reeling back, clutching his shoulder. Isa whipped around to see what had _dared _attack Lea, moving to stand protectively in front of the man. He neither thought about, nor cared, that his back was completely exposed to the Nobody.

Sora? No, there must be some misunderstanding. How could Sora-

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Sora ran through the hallways as fast as he could, breathless from the fight with the lesser Nobodies. They had gotten a few hits in, but nothing life threatening or that he couldn't brush off until later. Maybe it wouldn't be as bad if Isa had been there, but there had been a lot of Nobodies and Isa had taken off after Axel. Right after Sora had told him about the dangers of the Organization, too!

Kingdom Hearts, did Isa have a death wish or something?

He rounded a corner fast, almost too fast, and was greeted with the sight of Axel holding Isa at arm's length. Just what did he walk in o- No, it didn't matter. Stopping so suddenly that Sora almost lost his balance, he raised the Keyblade and pointed it at Axel. He aimed as carefully as he could, so he wouldn't hit Isa.

"_Blizzard!_"

Ice blossomed from the tip of the Keyblade and shot across the room, Isa's hair ruffling in the slip-stream as it passed by him and hit Axel in the shoulder. Sora partially lowered the Keyblade to a better position to attack, either with more magic or with physical force, and forced himself not to gasp for breath.

"Isa, how many times do I have to tell you that he's dangerous before it gets through that thick head of yours?" Sora shouted as best he could, "He's less than nothing, just a Nobody! Now get away from him!"

Less than nothing? How dare he.

Isa felt the pressure building behind his eyes. Uh-oh. This was a problem. He couldn't Berserk at Sora; as angry as Isa was at him for that, Sora was a friend. Besides that, he was a child. Isa's right hand clenched around the grip of his claymore, his left pressing to his forehead. He clenched his teeth as he tried to press back the rage.

"Sora." he ground out, "if you attempt to harm Lea, I _will_ hurt you. I don't want to do that, but I will not be in control of my actions if you do not stand down."

Sora almost faltered. Almost. Then he adjusted his grip on the Keyblade. He really didn't want to fight Isa; he wasn't sure he could win in a fight against him, not after having just fought a bunch of Nobodies. But if that's what it came down to...

"I can't make you any promises, Isa." he said, "If I have to fight this guy, I will. I'm not gonna just stand by because you want me to." Sora gave a rueful smile. "And I really don't want to fight you."

Axel recovered quickly, to find Isa staring down the Keyblade. He knew Roxas was stubborn, and Sora seemed just as hardheaded. Kinda dense too, but that was a whole other story.

This was not good, why hadn't Axel just stepped through the portal when he had the chance? May as well take the opportunity to stoke the fire.

"Hey, is that any way to treat your _best friend_, Roxas?" Axel sneered, brushing off the ice. Oh, wait.

Sora started, surprised. Did he just... did he just call him _Roxas_? Who in the worlds was Roxas? "You're delusional!" Sora shouted, shaking off his surprise. "Whoever that Roxas guy is, he isn't me! And you sure aren't any friend of mine!

"Or anyone's, I bet. Nobodies like you don't have emotions, and how can you be anyone's friend if you can't feel anything?" It was half a taunt, half a demand.

But either way, the comment almost sent Isa over the edge. He clamped his eyes shut to block out the red seeping into his vision, pressing his hand to his eyes.

"DO NOT _DARE_ SPEAK TO HIM LIKE THAT." he snarled out, causing Sora to actually freeze up. No, he needed to stop yelling. It wouldn't help anything. He sucked in a deep breath and held it for a moment.

This was a real problem. Cid and the littles knew enough to get out of the way once he started to lose it, but neither Sora nor Lea knew about his berserk state. It had simply never come up around Sora, and Lea...well, losing Lea was what had given rise to the rage in his heart that occasionally bubbled over and exploded.

"No, Sora. You do not understand." he bit out. Keep talking. If he was talking, he was still in control. "If you do not stand down _right now_, I am going to go berserk. I will not know you, nor will I be conscious of my actions, nor will I..." he paused to suck in another calming breath. "...remember them later. I may very well kill you both. For all our sakes, _stand down!_"

Okay, they was something very serious going on here that Sora didn't fully understand. He couldn't just let Axel run around causing trouble, but maybe it would be for the best if he just backed off now and let Isa calm down.

Because, quite frankly, he was starting to get more then a little scary.

Sora glanced from Axel to Isa, hesitated, then slowly lowered his Keyblade. He didn't relax or dismiss it, but he let the end touch the floor. "... Fine." That had better satisfy Isa, because there was no way that he was leaving himself unarmed and in the same room as a member of the Organization.

Axel watched the two go back and forth, but there was something... strange. Something bitter and unstable in Isa's words. This wasn't the boy he used to know.

But then again, Axel couldn't say a damn thing about changing.

Even if Isa had gotten through to Sora, the Nobody wasn't about to take any chances. The man was now at odds with himself, surrounded by his objective and his lost memories. What could he do, though? Try to pry out Roxas again? But before he could settle on a single thought he found himself with his hand on Isa's shoulder, leaning over to make sure his friend had settled down. Isa flinched at his touch, but then seemed to relax.

"Alright, well that was uncalled for. If I had a heart I'd be crushed, Sora. You don't really mean that," he drawled, laying on the sarcasm. It'd be absurd to admit he was more than a little nervous about the situation. "Now that the two of you have calmed down," he nudged Isa, "I think we have some unfinished business, don't we? That is if yer trigger happy friend over here is ready to cool it. Well, not literally," Axel scowled as he rubbed his shoulder, still brushing off some ice.

Isa let out a shuddering breath, removing his hand from his eyes. "...yes, we do, Lea."

There he was, Isa seemed like himself again. Axel wasn't sure what just happened, but he was certain he'd get the explanation later. ...Okay maybe this wasn't as bad as he thought, well, that's what he'd convince himself for now. When he thought about it, Isa being friends with the Keyblade worked to his advantage. Sticking around could prove useful, as long as he was careful of his tracks.

And then a smile slipped on his face. This all seemed unreal. I mean here he was, 10 years later, but Axel wasn't entirely sure what to say to Isa. But Roxas was right before him and he had a million words. Okay, most of them weren't exactly _nice _things. Whatever. Curiosity led to Axel's next move-

"Alright buddy, you ready to let the grown ups talk? I'm sure Isa can handle himself, y'know, if I decide I don't feel like playing nice," Axel gestured at Sora, who was still gripping his keyblade. The Nobody found a grin plastered on his face again, he was in control of this situation now.

Sora glared at Axel and tightened his grip on the keyblade. It was taking all of his willpower to not lunge at Axel right then and there, but he had to keep it cool. For Isa's sanity, apparently. But Axel was making it very very difficult to not run over there and whap him a few times with the keyblade.

He was right, though. Of course Isa could handle himself if things turned ugly. But Sora trusted Axel about as far as he could throw him, and the last thing he wanted to do was let the Nobody out of his sight.

"I'm not your friend, so quit acting like I am." Sora spat venomously. "I don't know who this Roxas you think I am is, but looks like he left. Can't say I blame the guy! He probably got tired of putting up with you and bailed."

Ah, dammit all. Isa could handle Axel if something happened. But right then Sora had to leave and cool down, or he'd probably attack Axel with a keyblade to the face. Dammit, how could a Nobody be so annoying? Fuming, Sora turned around and headed from the dead-end back out the way he came. Maybe by the time he found his way out of this maze he'd have calmed down.

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Wow did Sora's words sting. Never mind how that was even possible. Axel winced, but those words would never bite as hard as Roxas'.

Isa, though, just sighed in exasperation at Sora. That kid. He shook his head, just relieved that that had not ended poorly.

"Nevermind him, Lea. He's got a bit of a mean streak." Stubborn, too. Isa doubted Sora would leave them alone for long; knowing that boy, he'd end up coming back with Isa's whole family in tow or something.

Isa was curious about this Roxas, but he thought that could wait. This was so surreal. Isa felt a bit like he was dreaming; the emotions weren't hitting him right then. He leaned his claymore against the wall, then sat down against it, patting the floor beside him.

"Sit and talk with me. Tell me about your life."

Axel decided to flop down next to Isa, an arm folded over his knee as he outstretched his other leg, finally leaning on his free arm. For such a skinny guy he sure did take up a lot of room. Isa glanced over at the Nobody, a smirk playing across his face. Lea still sat the same way, all sprawled out willy-nilly.

Axel's hand fell just next to Isa's. It wasn't intentional, but the Nobody avoided eye contact anyway.

"Hah. If you call this a life. I've got nothing to tell you but a horror story, Isa," He leaned his head against the wall, rolling his eyes to catch a glimpse of blue, "No heart, not much to share. What about you, I bet there's tons of stuff yer dying to tell me."

Isa's smirk fell as he thought about Lea's words. A horror story...well, even so, he wanted to hear it. He didn't know that Lea would want to tell him, though. And Isa did have so much he wanted to share with him, but...now that he could, he felt...strangely tongue-tied.

What had their lives become? He couldn't believe how things had changed, because of an attack that had, honestly, lasted less than a minute. Isa took a deep breath, and decided to just go.

"...not much better for me, I'm afraid. Without you, I-...well."

He had to pause, considering.

"...Things weren't right, without you. I very nearly destroyed myself. If it weren't for Cid, I'm certain I wouldn't be here now to speak with you."

Axel immediately locked eyes with Isa. Nearly destroyed himself? That sounded so strange coming from this man. In all of Axel's memories as Lea, Isa was so... so cool. So collected. The thought of losing that knucklehead Lea... ruining him? The Nobody had to remind himself that this was also the man who just confessed his love. Which would have taken Axel aback if he knew how to respond to that. Running it over in his mind, he tried to imagine how Lea would have felt to hear that.

It reminded him of sea salt ice cream. And lazy days in the summer heat. Stargazing at night. Sharing silly dreams.

_"...inside people's memories I can live forever"_

Sitting at the clock tower, he remembered feeling at peace with those lost days. Axel was alright with the fact that he'd never have a heart again. Days like those where he didn't regret losing pain, hate, misery. But he didn't feel dead right now.

In fact he felt so alive, but was he just deceiving himself? The Nobody was wracking his mind for an answer. He just wanted to be near Roxas again, there was a promise attached to it... he could feel it there even with no clear memory. But Isa was right here. What was happening to him...?

"I wish I could say I felt the same. Y'know, that's what makes this so complicated," Axel idly scratched his head, "I can't bring myself to care, but the truth is I almost feel like I do. Silly isn't it?

"Heh, but to think you found some room in your heart for _me_," he nudged Isa with a smile, "I can hardly believe it. Hell, even if I had a heart I'm not sure how I'd react. But y'know..." He turned his face away from Isa, letting out a sigh as his thoughts escaped his mind.

"I'm pretty sure Lea wouldn't be able to live with the things I've done, Isa. How can I be so sure you could...?"

Isa's hand snapped out to clench around Lea's. His hair hid his face now, and his voice was low, almost a whisper.

"I nearly beat a classmate to death with my bare hands, a month after I lost you. And I was happy about it, because he insulted you, so he deserved it."

Lea's words had somehow opened the floodgates, and everything came pouring out without a pause. He squeezed Lea's hand tight.

"...and it wasn't the last time. I got in fights almost every day. I am still not sure if I hoped someone would kill me, but I always won, and I do not remember a moment of any of them. I have had these fits, these...bursts of rage, ever since.

"I failed out of school. I couldn't focus, couldn't think about anything but how I let you die. I felt...numb, and cold. Cid took pity on me and put me to work, but...then the darkness came, and...and we lost everything but each other. If it hadn't been for Cid, and the littles..."

His voice cut off, and he was silent for a long moment. After a deep breath, he continued.

"...I cannot lose you again, Lea. I cannot."

Axel let Isa wrap his hand around his, but this man's words were too much. _"I wish I could care"_... but he did. No, that was stupid. But he felt something. Well it was just a trick.

An illusion he started feeling during those days on the clock tower.

"Man, this heart thing is going to be the death of me," Axel gritted his teeth at his own dark humor. The Nobody reached a hand over, nudging Isa's chin so his face was visible again. "I'm right here," Axel squinted into his eyes, but no, it was useless. He picked himself off the ground, briefly dusting off his long black coat. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't bring himself to fake it. Not when this man was so- ...genuine.

"Isa, get a grip. I mean, you're the one who's supposed to keep _me _in line." He laughed a bit at that. Was Isa really prepared for this moment? He was an open book, and Axel remained unphased. Something started to consume him, and it was time to spill it out. Jealousy? As close as the Nobody could care to feel anyway.

"At any rate, you seem to be forgetting the whole 'Nobody' thing. So let me spell it out for you." An empty rage took over Axel, his eyes ablaze with some new flavor of agony. "I'm _not_ Lea. And I can sit here and pretend to be him, or I can tell it like it is. I can't believe you'd just lose control, Isa. What's wrong with you?" Axel spat, pointing an accusing finger at Isa. "I don't have a heart, I don't even exist. Get **THAT** memorized. And all I'm _hearing_ is a story, when I want to feel it-"

He staggered a bit, eyes darting across the room. "And I just fucking let Roxas go, when I promised him- What's come over me? Do you see how I live now? Is this what you really want? I mean poor you, but oh," his voice dropped, lighting the final match, "What I would give to suffer like you do, Isa. Why don't you give that one a thought."

The Nobody was reeling. Seething. Fuming.

"You thought THAT was hell? No, THIS is hell."

"So," he lowered himself to Isa's level, locking eyes with the bluehaired man, "Don't go and promise me a heart when you don't even know what it's _worth_."

Isa had no words. He could not come up with a single thing to say. It was like his brain had ground to an absolute halt. So he just stared into the Nobody's eyes, too stunned to do anything else.

Lea's eyes.

Axel's-

He couldn't close the distance between them.

"That's what I thought," Axel growled, "I told you so. Maybe you were better off forgetting me."

He didn't mean that. Deep inside he knew he didn't mean that. Just because he didn't have a heart didn't mean he should break Isa's.

And it stung a little, even though it shouldn't.

"Well, aren't you going to say anything? You seemed so eager to chat it up before," Axel questioned. The selfishness inside him wanted some condolence, even though it'd do no good.

"I could never forget you..." was all Isa could say, his voice barely a whisper.

His heart was breaking all over again. The semblance of peace he'd found, working with his cobbled-together little family, trying to put the pieces of their world back together, crumbled.

Axel stayed hunched before Isa, watching him break right before his eyes. He wondered for a moment, if Lea ever felt that way. But it felt like Lea was reaching his arm out, somewhere inside, still hoping Isa would save him. The Nobody stared into the other's eyes, until he felt something warm run down his face.

Isa's arms were reaching out before he knew it, wrapping around the redhead's neck, and then his face was wet and pressed into that red hair, and all he could smell was Lea. The Nobody didn't resist, instead clamping himself closer, suddenly entangled in blue hair and a warm embrace.

"You jerk," he whispered, sinking into the man's arms. "What am I going to do?" It'd be nice to hear some reassurance. The Nobody wasn't sure what his brilliant scheme would be, Isa was always the one with the plans.

Roxas.

He walked away, or maybe Axel pushed him away. But Isa was always there, even when Lea was gone.

"Stay here." Isa whispered back. "...we'll figure out something. It'll be okay..."

He rubbed his face in Axel's hair. He was embarrassing himself, crying like a child. But somehow he couldn't care about that. It was all too much.

"Let me help you."

Axel wasn't going to ask how or why. But maybe it'd work out. Who was he kidding? He couldn't run away from the Organization, there was no way he could take those guys on if they came after him.

He wanted to believe Isa though, for now anyway. This gave him a moment away from his mission, and well, it was better than sea salt ice cream.

Oh man, speaking of ice cream, "Urrrrrk, Isa. I'm starving." Axel slumped over in Isa's hold, laughing at himself for ruining the moment.


	3. Interrupted

A/N: And we're back. Who's in the mood for a little plot development?

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_Axel wasn't going to ask how or why. But maybe it'd work out. Who was he kidding? He couldn't run away from the Organization, there was no way he could take those guys on if they came after him._

_He wanted to believe Isa though, for now anyway. This gave him a moment away from his mission, and well, it was better than sea salt ice cream._

_Oh man speaking of ice cream, "Urrrrrk, Isa. I'm starving." Axel slumped over in Isa's hold, laughing at himself for ruining the moment._

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Isa blinked, and then he laughed. Really laughed.

The sound was foreign to his ears. Had he not laughed like this in that long? He supposed he hadn't. But suddenly everything really did seem like it would be alright.

"You look it. Do they not feed you in that Organization?" Isa smiled at the Nobody.

"Come on, then. If you're really that hungry, I'm sure Aerith has lunch ready by now."

"You sure? Oh man, I hope it's pizza. I'm really craving pizza," Axel groaned, "And well, I don't really have time with all my missions and- hey wait a second! Are you trying to say something?" he lightly jabbed at Isa.

Well, he could at least use this time to get more out of Roxas. So he could just play it off as a mission errand in the meantime. Speaking of...

"What about Sora though? He's not going to try and bludgeon me at the table, will he?" Axel wasn't afraid of the Keyblade... okay, maybe just a little.

Isa chuckled softly. "You let me worry about Sora. He's an idiot, but he's a big-hearted idiot. He'll come around."

Isa wasn't sure how long this little bit of peace was going to last, but he intended to milk it for all it was worth. But he'd better at least let the others know that he was fine and unharmed; the last thing he needed was to be interrupted by Sora, or worse, Squall, while in a compromising position. Isa stood, easily lifting Axel to his feet as he did. "Come on, then. Before Sora comes barreling back in here with my entire family looking to kill you. And I want to hear about this Roxas."

"Whoa wait, entire family?" Axel was a bit confused, last he remembered Isa didn't have much for a family. "I'm not in trouble, am I? Well, I guess that's a stupid question," He picked up the pace to match Isa's speed, wrapping an arm around his shoulder, "Hah, you're short," he teased, trying to avoid the subject of Roxas.

"Hmph." Isa snorted briefly. "You're the one who shot up to ridiculous heights. I'm not that short."

Isa let Axel leave his arm right where it was, smirking. "You may be in a bit of trouble. And yes, my entire family. Cid and the littles. We escaped together when Radiant Garden fell, and we've been together ever since."

Isa really felt so strange. He's been so miserable just a few minutes ago, but now he felt happier than he had in a long time. He honestly wanted to introduce Lea to everyone, and then maybe...

Axel just laughed at Isa's response and patted him on the shoulder. "Whatever you say, Isa," he wrapped his arm around tighter, "well I'm just warning you now, I can't stick around all day. I still gotta report back to the Organization until we figure this whole plan out. Last thing I need is them breathing down _your _neck too," he paused for a moment, realizing there was a smile on Isa's face.

"I've never seen you smile like that before, what's up?"

"Hmph." That was all Isa had to say on the subject of his smile. It fell, though, when he thought about the Organization.

"You had better come back. Otherwise I will be forced to come find you."

By that time they had reached the Bailey; Isa glanced away from Axel at the sound of pounding footsteps, but he didn't pull away from the Nobody.

The surprised look on Squall's face as he skidded to an abrupt halt almost made Isa snort out loud. He could see the gears turning in the young man's head as his gaze flicked between Isa and the Nobody.

Yuffie, though, had no concern for that. She and Aerith were right behind Squall, at least at first. Yuffie stepped in front of Squall, pointing at Axel with one hand while she placed the other on her hip.

"HEY YOU! Get away from Isa! Sora told us ALLLL about you!"

Isa groaned, while Axel just blinked at the threat.

"What's the matter? Yer not scared, are you?" the Nobody laughed, then turned to his companion.

"So uh, yeah, you so sure about this Isa? I probably don't belong here," he trailed off, looking around for a sign of Sora.

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After Leon and the others left, Sora puttered around Cid's house. They would be fine, Isa would be fine, they didn't need him making sure everything was fine, especially when they were all older than him...

Oh, dammit all.

Without saying a word, Sora dashed out the door and after the 'kids,' as Isa called them. He was worried about Isa, and he wouldn't deny it. He shouldn't have left him alone with that... that... _Nobody_. Who knows what could have happened after he left? Axel was a Nobody, after all. It's not like he had an attachment to anyone he might have known before. He could have dragged Isa back to the Organization or attacked him or-

... Or they could be standing in the Bailey, one of Axel's arms around Isa's shoulders, being confronted by Leon, Yuffie and Aerith. And that glare was back, aimed Axel's direction.

Isa almost groaned again in exasperation. Wonderful. Well, at least Squall only looked hesitant, not outright hostile. Isa was about to open his mouth to chide Yuffie, when...

"Yuffie. Don't be rude." Aerith, always the peacekeeper, stepped forward to just in front of Isa and Axel. She looked a a bit awkward, but bowed slightly anyway.

"I'm glad to finally meet you. Isa's told us so much about you." Well, that wasn't strictly true. Isa usually avoided the subject and he knew Aerith knew it, but if that was how she wanted to be he wasn't going to correct her. Isa smiled at her; he knew he could count on her, at least, to be open-minded.

Yuffie, however, squawked indignantly, waving her hand at Aerith. "Wait, you can't just- he's a liar! He's gonna take advantage of our Isa!"

Squall still had not said anything, but was beginning to look rather uncomfortable.

Well, this was honestly going much better than he had expected. Isa raised one hand to gesture to the three.

"Lea, this is Aerith. The excitable one is Yuffie, and my copycat is Squall."

"It's Leon," Squall grumbled indignantly. Isa just smirked at that.

"As I said, Squall."

Axel was just a little uncomfortable. Still, he kept his arm around Isa, digging a bit into his shoulder, hoping he'd convey his discomfort.

"Well, we should get along just fine. The name's Axel, not Lea, get it memorized," he recited. "And she needs to watch the attitude," the Nobody grumbled into Isa's ear, just loud enough for Yuffie to hear.

Aerith nodded, smiling at Axel for Isa's sake.

"Axel. I'll remember that."

Squall snorted then, and opened his mouth to grumble "Good luck getting _him _to call you that."

Isa smirked at Axel's discomfort. "Never mind Yuffie. She's 15 and excitable." He turned to Aerith then.

"Is there lunch, by chance? This idiot won't stop whining about how hungry he is."

Aerith blinked, but quickly recovered herself. "Uh...yes, there is. Um...Why don't we go back to the house, then...?"

Isa nodded and started forward, ignoring Sora's glare and Yuffie's indignant complaints. Squall and Aerith just exchange A Look, then followed.

Since he clearly wasn't going to get a say in the matter, Sora trailed after the rest of the group, glaring at the back of Axel's head at every opportunity. Sure, he could stay out here at the Bailey and sulk, but... _food_.

Besides. He couldn't exactly just wander off if they were taking Axel straight to what amounted to their headquarters, since Isa clearly didn't believe him about the dangers of Nobodies. He had fought lesser Nobodies before. If it came down to it, fighting a member of the Organization couldn't be all that different, right?

Though Isa would kill him if he fought Axel...

And so it was with some reluctance that he quit glaring in Axel's general direction, somewhere around the time they got back to Cid's house. For once worrying about Nobodies could wait. There was that whole food thing, and quite frankly he was pretty hungry.

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Okay it didn't look like there was pizza, but Axel didn't complain. Before he got ahead of himself though, he decided to wait until the whole crew piled in before he plucked a grape off the table. The inside was quaint, but the Nobody didn't pay much attention. He pulled up a seat and made himself at home, looking at the chair next to him and then at Isa expectantly.

Isa didn't even hesitated before taking the seat beside Axel. Everyone else, though, stood around awkwardly while Aerith grabbed the food. Everyone except Cid, that was. The older man grabbed a chair and swung it around to sit backward on it, just on the other side of Axel from Isa. Cid leaned on the chair's back, peering at the Nobody's face.

"Well, well. If it ain't you after all." He tipped his goggles back. "I was sorry about what happened to ya. Still am. Where you been for ten years?"

"Oh you know, busy," the Nobody said as he eyed the food on the table. This was awkward, Axel had gone from battle ready to... this? Besides, It sounded like this man already knew everything about Axel. Well, about Lea anyway.

"I'm not one for small talk, y'know. I figure Isa's already told you all about Lea," Axel eyed the blonde man suspiciously.

Cid leaned back a bit in his chair.

"Guess you don' remember me, huh? Well long time I guess, can' remember every neighbor. Remember YOU, though. Troublesome little punks, the both o' ya." Cid glanced up at Isa, and then back to Axel. "Yer welcome here any time. Don' worry about Yuff and Leon, they're just too uptight."

Axel looked up at Cid and blinked.

"OH... you're... OH. Damn we uh," He turned to Isa and whispered, "He's the one with the shop right? The guy who's window I totally smashed with my frisbees?"

Isa smirked. "Yes, Lea. He is the one with the shop."

Well this was awkward.

"I'm welcome here? Well uh, thanks," ...well that was nice. He turned to Isa with a confused look, but just shrugged and attacked the food in front of him.

The room lapsed into an awkward silence for a few minutes, only punctuated by the sound of people eating for the sake of something to do. After a few minutes of this, Isa cleared his throat. He needed to break the tension.

"...Cid. I'd like to make decrypting the rest of the data on Ansem's computer priority one for now."

"Ah yeah," Cid was quick to respond, glad for a reason to break the silence. "I can see why that'd become a priority, yeah. Think we'll dig sumthin' up on howta get hearts _back?_"

At Isa's nod, he got up and moved over to the computer dominating one side of the room, booting it up.

"Ain't gonna be a fun read, though. Didn' know it before these reports, but those apprentices were some sick bastards. Ye'd think they were havin _fun_ with those experiments of theirs, 'way they write about 'em."

Axel was suddenly paying attention."What's that all about now? Ansem's computer? And what about the apprentices?" He leaned over the table, trying to make sense of the conversation.

Isa scowled. The apprentices. How he hated them. Just the thought of them filled Isa with rage. Ever since finding that computer, and reading what reports they'd managed to decry-

Isa had clenched his glass too tightly and smashed it. He winced, shaking his hand to rid it of the largest pieces of glass. Aerith tutted and went to get a cloth, as if this sort of thing wasn't out of the ordinary.

"...We found Ansem's computer in the wreckage of the castle. It has a number of files on it...from what we've managed to decode, it seems they were researching hearts." Isa was fighting to keep his voice level and even. "The Heartless that attacked you escaped from their lab. They had been throwing people to them on purpose, just to see what would happen." Isa's voice was very tight by the end of his sentence. It still infuriated him. Those bastards...he took a deep breath and continued.

"...there is the possibility that their research notes may contain some hint on how to help you."

Did he just smash that glass? And no one thought anything of it? Axel placed a hand on Isa's shoulder, but soon slipped his hand back to the table, gripping the edge as he listened to Isa speak.

"Oh, well I'd like to see these notes. Because I heard a different story." The Nobody was no longer making eye contact with anyone in the room.

Isa scowled, ignoring Aerith bandaging his hand to look at Axel.

"You can see them if you want. We have the decoded notes downloaded to the local network."

Something about his reaction wasn't right...

"What story were _you_ told?"

Sora, who had up until this point still been doing his damnedest to completely ignore Axel, started paying attention to the Nobody. He seemed... upset, maybe, over something Isa had said. Was upset the right word? Couldn't be. Axel was a Nobody, he couldn't be upset.

But his reaction was odd enough that Sora wasn't sure he had another word for it.

He almost said something, almost asked about what he had been told, because this was the first he'd heard about any of this. Sora had known that Ansem was involved, but he hadn't known of any apprentices. But Isa asked first, and Sora was rather thankful for that. It meant that _he_ didn't have to ask, just pay attention and wait for the answer.

And he didn't have to wait long. Axel gripped the table, trying not to lose his cool.

"They were the only ones there when you were gone, Isa. Not that it mattered anyway. Not like I could be lonely if I tried." His eyes sunk, trying to avoid Isa's but failing.

"...you might say they're heartless, but who are you to talk."

Isa's scowl deepened. Something was going on here that he didn't understand.

"What are you talking about?"

Axel finally made eye contact, immediately shoving away from the table to stand, towering over Isa.

"Y'know, I don't want to hear anything about what monsters _they_ are. They're after their hearts too, just like I am. But they... he told me. He told me about the day I died and... How you left me there to die... They saw the whole thing happen and took me in, gave me a purpose," Axel slammed a fist into the table, focusing his glare on Sora this time, "But what does it matter when I'm just a Nobody. Because I clearly chose to live this way."

Isa stared at him for a moment. _What_ had he just- had he just accused Isa of _abandoning_ him?

Isa surged to his feet. "I never did!" he snarled. How could this- "I tried to save you! How do you think I got this?" Isa gestured at his face.

He tried to think clearly. "They." Was this Organization run by the _apprentices? _What had they told Lea to keep him loyal?

Isa hadn't thought he could hate the apprentices more than he already did, but-

Axel was fuming, too angry to give Isa the benefit of the doubt. "You could have gotten that fucking thing anywhere. Because next thing I knew I was alone. I was alone until the Organization. I could have been swept away by the darkness but _they_ took me in. Xigbar was convinced you died too, but... if you were a Nobody we would have found you. So I gave up looking for you and..." his eyes drifted elsewhere. To the clocktower, to Roxas' face.

Isa could not believe what he was hearing. After everything, he was being accused of _this?_

"Lea, I thought you were _dead! _I had no reason to believe you weren't!"

Xigbar. Who was Xigbar? If Isa ever found out, he would absolutely destroy that person. Someone had deliberately gone out of their way to turn Lea against him.

"I _never_ abandoned you, Lea! I was right behind you! Excuse me for only managing to be disfigured before being rescued! If I'd had my way I _would_ have gone with _you!"_

He was getting worked up again. But it wasn't Lea he was angry at. None of this was his fault. None of it.

How dare this Xigbar? Isa would find this person, and end them.

"How do I know that? This was all just, pure coincidence that I even found you. If I wasn't even looking for Rox-" Axel had to think about that. Roxas abandoned him too. And here Isa said he'd have gone with Axel but...

"Forget it..."

Isa was beyond words. He was absolutely furious. This could not stand.

He reached forward and grabbed Axel by the arm, dragging him over to the computer and shoving him into the chair Cid had vacated when the argument had started. Without saying a word, he leaned over and clicked open the file that had made his blood boil the most. One of Xehanort's journal entries.

"Read." he demanded.

Isa didn't need to read it. He knew it by heart.

_Some of the research subjects have escaped. Two children were attacked in front of the castle. However, only one was killed; Aeleus managed to save the other._

_Like the other live subjects, the boy who died faded away. Of more interest however was the one who survived. We have never had a subject exposed to the Heartless and live; that the wounds inflicted by the Heartless, which usually caused the subject to fade into darkness, not only remained but were disfiguringly scarring was unexpected._

_It would be fascinating to study the boy. To dive into a pack of Heartless bare-fisted implies a very strong heart. However, the death has already called too much attention to us. It would look too suspicious if the surviving boy disappeared._

_As it is, this situation may cause us some trouble. It would be inconvenient for our experiments to be halted. Something will have to be done._

Axel slumped into the chair, but read the file before him hoping for some sense of truth. But it didn't seem right, like a... a conspiracy.

The Nobody continued staring at the screen after he'd finished reading, unable to put it all together. This wasn't the story the man with the eyepatch fed him. This wasn't the group of Nobodies who gave him a new home. This wasn't what... he was dragging Roxas back to?

He just stared. And stared.

"So there you have it." Isa stated as levelly as he could manage. "Do you need to read more? There are more files; this is just the only one that mentions _you. _Do you see how little they cared what happened to you? You were nothing but a footnote to them."

He leaned over and closed the window, scowling.

"Now. I think you'd better start talking, Lea. Things are clearly not how you think they are."

Axel winced. "Maybe I don't want to talk. What do I have to say huh? I've been fed nothing but lies." Shit, now he knew how Roxas felt.

Shit shit shit.

This was not in the plan. If there even was a plan.

"What do I even say after that?" he slumped over in the chair, resting his face in his hands, trying to cool down.

Isa leaned over his old friend. Lea not knowing what to do, he knew how to deal with.

"Start by telling us what they told you. And, I want to hear about this Roxas if you are ready to be rational."

He frowned. He felt bad being so cold when Lea seemed genuinely distressed, Nobody or not. He rested his hand on the redhead's shoulder.

"_I want to help you._" he insisted. "Trust me. Please."

Axel felt a hand on his shoulder but he didn't want to move. This was too much to process, and it was even more complicated knowing he was a Nobody but yet ...felt sad. Frustrated. Angry. He had convinced himself he was a good actor, but it was starting to feel like an excuse in itself.

"Roxas, he... It's ridiculous. We shared sea salt ice cream." he sighed, stopping to make sense of his next confession. "He made me feel like- ...when I was with you. Like I had a heart again. But it doesn't make sense," he removed his hands from his face and grabbed at Isa's shirt, pulling him a bit closer. "I'm not supposed to feel this way. I'm not supposed to feel at all. And I keep telling myself that, but this 'feeling' doesn't go away."

"Oh, _ice cream._ I see how it is," Isa tried to joke, squeezing Axel's shoulder reassuringly.

Axel turned away when Isa spoke. "It wasn't like _that_."

Meanwhile, the gears were turning in Isa's head. Both Sora and Axel had insisted up and down that Nobodies had no feelings at all. But Lea's behavior, both before and now, made it very difficult for Isa to believe he had no emotions. And now Lea was admitting to feeling some emotion now, even though it seemed like he truly had not in the past.

Roxas...Isa had a suspicion. The way Axel had acted before, how he had spoken to Sora, who had been missing and forgotten for a year...Isa suspected Lea was not the only Nobody to have a new name forced onto him.

"This Roxas was a Nobody, correct? What was his original name?"

Axel pulled on Isa's shirt again, "What do you think? I thought it was pretty obvious anyway. Lea, L-E-A, add an X, that's Axel. Roxas well," he didn't want to come right out and say it, after all, Sora didn't know about Roxas' existence. Or the fact that Axel may or may not have planned to kill Sora in order to get him back.

Well, what they didn't know couldn't hurt them.

Isa rolled his eyes, flicking Axel's ear in false irritation. "How exactly did you expect me to know how those names were spelled?" In any case, if his hunch on how Roxas was spelled was correct, then...

Isa looked over at the keyblade wielder. "Sora. Where _exactly_ have you been for the past year?"

Sora blinked, then frowned. He couldn't imagine why in the worlds it would be important, but maybe Isa knew something he didn't. It certainly wouldn't be the first time someone else had caught something he had missed.

"In some place under the abandoned mansion in Twilight Town." They didn't have to know that he had been asleep the entire year instead of working. Not yet at least. "Why?"

"Doing what?" Isa pressed. He was sure he knew the answer, but he wanted to hear it from Sora. He didn't want to jump to conclusions. "What were you doing that would cause everyone you knew to forget about you until just a short while ago?"

"Sleeping!" Sora snapped in reply, "As far as anyone can tell, Donald, Goofy and I have asleep for the past year. The last thing any of us remember is defeating Ansem and helping Riku and the King close the door to the light!"

Isa thought about it for a long moment, and then decided that Sora was too thick to figure it out without more obvious hints.

"Well, more to the point...have you ever lost your heart?"

"Of course I haven-" Sora stopped himself and stared at the table, arms crossed as he thought and looking maybe a little upset. No. He had forgotten about it until Isa asked, but... he _had _lost his heart. Right here, in Hollow Bastion.

"... Yes. Right after we found out that Ansem had possessed Riku." He had only done it to get Kairi to wake up. "I had to. For Kairi." Sora looked back over at Isa. "But it was only for ten, maybe fifteen minutes. I'm fine!"

Wait wait wait. He had told Isa about how Nobodies were created earlier, and now he was asking about this. "Why? You don't think this Roxas...?"

"That's exactly what I think. But maybe Lea can confirm it for us."

Isa knew people's hearts became Heartless themselves when they were lost, but it seemed that Lea knew Roxas for quite a while. He remembered reading a file about someone claiming to be Ansem removing their heart deliberately. That person had become a Heartless, but had stayed sentient and in control. Could that be a regular mechanism? If that was the case, then Sora...

"...Sora, I suspect you may have been a Heartless for longer than you realize." He frowned. Lea had been speaking to Sora as if he _were_ Roxas. Could it-

Could Sora and his Nobody have reunited?

Then there was hope for Lea. His hand tightened on the Nobody's shoulder.

"Lea, what happened to Roxas?"

Axel's grip on Isa loosened, slumping forward again. This was going to lead to some unpleasant confessions, he just knew it. He wondered if anyone would put it together, why Axel was after Sora in the first place.

"He left the Organization. I've been assigned to get him back. He was our chance at getting our hearts back but," the Nobody sighed, remembering the last moment he saw Roxas in that black coat. "He went back to Sora, even though I tried to stop him. But this one wouldn't be, y'know, up and causing problems if Roxas was still around," he laughed. "But it's no wonder Roxas was such a knucklehead, look at you, kid."

Axel turned to Isa again, "Look... that's why I even stayed behind in the first place. Yer looking at Roxas; what's left of him, anyway."

A glare was Sora's response to the knucklehead comment. Not that he could really say anything; he hadn't exactly been the most polite to Axel. But he sucked it up, because he had questions that only Axel could answer. "What do you mean by 'he went back' to me? Or that I wouldn't be up and about?"

And, for that matter, about him being a heartless for longer then he thought. He had been running around fighting Ansem with the Keyblade, for crying out loud! He wouldn't have been able to use it if he'd been a Heartless. ... Right?

"There's even some things I don't understand. But I do know that Roxas... claimed he needed to go back to you," this brought up some old wounds. "He was so damn sure he knew what he was doing but, even still," Axel pointed to Sora, "Now they're after you, 'cuz of that Keyblade. They just want to use you like they used Roxas, it's no big deal that _he's_ gone. Hell, I'm the only one concerned with getting him... back..."

He thought about it for a moment and came to a sudden realization. "Damnit, they're just toying with me! They just want me out of their hair while they pull the strings-"

As if on cue, the windows of the little house were shattered from the outside in, Dusks and Snipers pouring in. Their target was immediately recognized; while the others in the room were restrained, the majority flocked to Axel, seizing him firmly. The struggle was minimum, a clear Sleep spell cast on the redhead as the Nobody underlings attempted to drag him out.

At the sound of the shattering windows, Isa and the other residents of the house immediately ducked and covered. It was a completely instinctual reaction, honed from years of having to worry about the Heartless. It only took a moment for Isa to shake off that automatic reaction, but by then the Nobodies were on top of him. He forced his way up, using brute strength to overpower the Nobodies and get to his feet, snagging at his Claymore. He didn't have room to swing it, though, so he had to resort to grappling to free himself.

Around him was pandemonium. Aerith, the noncombatant, was crouched in a corner, being menaced by the Dusks. Yuffie was screeching and flailing, hacking away at whatever she could reach with her little darts. Cid hadn't been near enough to his spear to reach it, and was struggling to free himself from the two snipers that had him suspended near the ceiling. And Squall was having the same problem as Isa; inside the little house, with this many bodies packed in, he didn't have room to swing his weapon.

The door was blasted open, swinging limply with iridescent purple diamonds wedged into the shattered wood. The Dusks made their attempt to cling onto Sora as well, trying to drag him away.

"Two for one special." The hooded Organization member standing outside of the shop leaned a little to look into one of the windows, grinning under his hood. "What luck," he continued to chuckle to himself. He stepped forwards and lifted one gun to rest on his shoulder as he caught sight of Axel's flaming red spikes, his limp body being carried by the wriggling Dusks.

"Don't mind me," the man laughed, loud enough for those in the house to hear, "Just taking what's rightfully ours!"

The new voice seemed familiar to Isa, but the young man couldn't put his finger on where he had heard it. His head snapped towards the door, and that was when he saw Axel, being carted away in the grip of the Dusks.

He wasn't moving.

Isa panicked. He knew nothing about how Nobodies worked, knew nothing about fading. Everything was suddenly a blur. It wasn't a true Berserk; he was in control of himself, but everything was happening too fast for him to form a clear impression of. In seconds, he had smashed the Dusks trying to restrain him to paste, lunging to wrest the redhead from the grasp of the Nobodies that held him.

"Lea." He patted the Nobody's face, letting out a brief sigh of relief when the Nobody made an unconscious groan of protest. Alive, then.

Squall had by then fought his way to Isa's side, standing at his back. Isa raised his claymore, holding Axel in his free arm to protect him.

It was a bit of a surprise to the hooded man to see the Dusks disbanded so quickly, but as soon as two fighters appeared from the ruined home, it made sense. He would need to call up a few extra Nobodies to really give them a challenge. There was a flash from inside, a signal to the Organization Nobody that Sora was, unfortunately, not as easily subdued as The Flurry.

"Well well, not bad for a couple of street punks," he grinned. He twirled a gun in his hand, several lower level Nobodies appearing at either side of him. They writhed and fidgeted impatiently. As he continued to speak, one or two more Snipers and Dusks appeared, beginning to surround the area. "Buuut you might as well, y'know, give up now. Unless you want someone to get hurt...?" The guns were now pointed straight at Isa and Axel, a carnivorous bite to his voice.

Then, he tilted his head, still hooded, and his attention was on Isa.

"Something familiar about you, Blueberry. Something with that blue and that red..." It was lucky he had his hood up, his poker face was slipping entirely. He knew exactly who this man was and what was going on.

There was something familiar about the hooded man, too. Isa turned his body so that Axel, draped over his shoulder in a fireman's carry, was more protected. He held his claymore in front of him to shield his front from any potential gunarrow bolts. He trusted Squall to protect his back as he confronted the cloaked man.

"You'll have to try much harder than that." His eyes narrowed. "It's rude to attack someone without even introducing yourself."

The Organization member flicked his hand to the side dismissively, letting out a low laugh. "Hah. As if I owe you guys the pleasure of knowing _my_ name. I mean, I already went easy on you. Could've brought your whole house down if I wanted."

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The attack was fast and came out of nowhere.

Sora was used to dealing with both of those things; his enemies were usually various creatures that appeared from the darkness, after all. And more than a few of them were quite fast. But he wasn't used to being attacked indoors. Nobodies and Heartless had never attacked inside a house before. And _that_ was what caught Sora off guard.

Dusks clung to him, trying to drag him after a limp Axel despite all his struggling. If he could get just a bit of ground, just one arm free to summon the Keyblade and actually be able to _do _something with it-

He caught sight of the chaos the rest of the room was in. He had to do _something_. "Give me strength!"

A brief flash of light and whirl of red and flashing Keyblades later, Sora had freed himself. His first impulse was to get to Isa's side, but he could hopefully handle things for right now. Aerith needed help.

It didn't take long for Sora to utterly destroy the Dusks and Snipers between him and Aerith. Before long he was stationed firmly in front of her, demolishing any Nobodies that came at them.

Fighting furiously, Yuffie managed to free Cid. They fought their way to Sora and Aerith, standing side-by-side to form a wall in front of the brunette.

"Sora! We can protect Aerith; you go help Isa and Leon!" Yuffie declared.

Sora glanced at the two of them, then nodded. If they said they could, then he believed them. "Got it!"

He sprinted through the room and towards the demolished door. The Nobodies in his way were dealt with fairly quickly, though the Snipers slowed him down a bit. Another Dusk went down, and then Sora was outside, skidding to a stop by Isa's side.

"Thought you might want some help," he said with a grin, glancing away from the startling amount of Nobodies to look at Isa briefly.

As Sora appeared, the Organization member let his guns lower slightly. His lank body stood firm, feet planted to the cobblestone ground, but his arms and the way he moved his head were expressive enough; his voice was confident. This was a man who was more aware of what was going on around him than was possibly natural.

He finally lowered his guns completely and lifted his hand up to his hood, pressing the hem of the fabric up and back to reveal his face.

"Roxas, good of you to show up! Now the party's really starting." The man cocked his guns again, taking a small step forward.

Isa's eyes flew wide open. Another ghost stood before him, but this was one he wanted to break.

Braig. The apprentice whose meager notes were the cruelest, the most calculatingly vicious. This was a man who had enjoyed the research experiments that had destroyed their world.

Wait. Braig. With an X added in...

Isa saw red. The pressure started building behind his eyes. This time, he didn't try to stop it. Axel slid from his grasp as he hunched, leaning on his claymore. His breathing turned into jagged, snarling gasps, his lips drawing back into a tooth-bearing grimace.

Leon whipped his head around when he heard the sound. "Shit!" He grabbed Axel's hood, dragging the Nobody behind him as he ran away from Isa and back towards the house as quickly as he could. "GET CLEAR!" he yelled at Sora. "NOW!"

Sora whipped around, confused. Wait, what was going on? Why was Isa acting like that? It was apparently really bad, whatever the reason, considering how Leon reacted. Ah, dammit. There'd be time to ask questions later, when Isa wasn't acting like... _that_.

Sora followed Leon's example and hightailed it back to the house. Or at least, almost. He stopped a few feet from the door, leery of leaving Isa entirely on his own. Though it didn't really look like he'd be needing any help. "Leon, what's going on with Isa?"

Leon stopped when Sora did, waving his gunblade towards the door.

"He's going Berserk. He doesn't recognize anyone when he's like this, he'll just smash everything in his path until he kills that guy or he wears himself out. If you stay out here you'll just be in his way. Now _get in the house._" Leon hiked Axel up to be draping over his arm while he talked, realizing Isa would probably not be pleased if he choked the Nobody to death with his hood. He was waiting for Sora before he'd enter the house himself.

Isa was vaguely aware of their movements, and then everything was a white haze. His eyes were nearly rolled back into his head, and suddenly he was moving, faster, stronger than he could ever hope to be except in this state. He snarled, a harsh, gutteral sound, and lunged at the Nobody.

"_**BRAIG!**_"

This was something Xigbar couldn't have expected. What the hell was up with this guy? All of a sudden he was-

"Woah!" It was lucky that Xigbar was so agile. He hopped back out of the spiked grasp of Isa's blade, raising his guns as a weapon and a shield. The Dusks around him quivered, sensing the danger, and flung themselves from every angle at Isa. The Snipers shot down at the house in the meantime, trying to get a hit on Sora and Leon before they entered the safety of the house. Leon grabbed Sora by the shirt and bodily drag him into the house, just barely avoiding the bolts from the blue.

Isa was unstoppable. He plowed through the Dusks like they were paper, not even noticing them in his single-minded drive to destroy Xigbar. His claymore flashed and sliced impossibly fast for such a large, heavy weapon. Isa swung the sword like it was as light as a feather, but the stone of the pavement and nearby walls was reduced to gravel wherever he struck.

Purple bullets flew at Isa, going for hits. Xigbar wasn't scared, no, that wasn't even possible. But this was an unexpected element. This kid, who he as Braig and Dilan and Aeleus had tossed out of the castle on countless occasions with his little redheaded buddy, was like a rabid beast out for blood. This was an anomaly that even Xigbar couldn't have accounted for.

He dodged attacks, sometimes just barely, bouncing from Isa like a flea. This was not an opponent to play with too terribly much; he was unpredictable and wild.

Isa deflected most of the bullets with his sword, and the few that struck home didn't even draw a batted eye. It was like he didn't even notice them. He took no notice of anything but Xigbar, lunging fast and hard at him. The Berserker was not terribly accurate. His swings were huge and he overextended, but the force behind the blows was not to be trifled with.

Xigbar could feel that force, the air swishing past him, pressing the fabric of his coat against his legs. This was unreal, this was exhilarating, this was-

He winced as he felt one of the spikes of Isa's blade gouge into his bicep. The Nobody jolted back and leaped into the air, flipping over the bluenette and firing shots from above. Once he'd skidded to a halt on the ground, he glanced at his arm. A flesh wound, it would take more than that to stop him.

"You swing like a girl!" he jeered, hopping up to stand on a pocket of air a head higher than the blue-haired berserker, and setting up another two rounds to fling down at him.

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There was gunfire and howling coming from somewhere. A warm hand pressing against his face. Axel's eyes flickered open; Aerith was huddled over him with a bottle in her hand.

"Oh, thank goodness you're alright!" she exclaimed.

What... just happened? The Nobody stumbled to his feet despite her protests, and ran through the now demolished front door to find-

"Xigbar? Oh shit, I'm screwed. W-wait, Isa?" he watched in horror as the blue haired man swung his claymore like a lunatic. In an instant, Axel summoned his chakrams and ran out to help defuse... whatever had happened while he was passed out.

Isa ignored Axel competely. He swung his claymore above his head to deflect the bullets Xigbar fired as he went by. Isa also ignored his taunts; instead, he_ leapt_ into the air to a ridiculous height to get at Xigbar. He raised the claymore above his head as he leapt, swinging it straight down at the Nobody even as bullets grazed by him.

This time there was no way of avoiding the attack through conventional means. Xigbar disappeared, Isa's claymore hitting the remaining wisp of the Nobody's image, and the one eyed man reappeared crouching against the wall, his guns meeting to create a rifle. From that point, he started firing much heavier, more dangerous shots, cracking the stone floor with each missed hit.

The heavier shots were actually easier for Isa to block because there were fewer of them. However, blocking them was slowing Isa down considerably; the impact of the bullets on his sword left him slightly off-balance, making him take a moment to get moving again. For now, Isa was pinned down and on the defensive.

Axel couldn't watch this go on, and even if it marked him as a traitor he decided he needed to take action against the Freeshooter. Flames circled his chakrams as he aimed, and flung one into the wall as a warning. The second came barreling after, Xigbar's rifle as it's target.

He could only hope he didn't miss.

Once more, it was Xigbar's quick skills that saved him as he disappeared just before Axel's chakram wedged itself into the stone wall. He appeared again, guns separate once more, and he scoffed, firing off again, now aiming for Axel as a target too.

"You really shouldn't have betrayed us, Lea!" He was going for the stairs." You were bein' such a good little puppy, but now you've gone and pulled a Roxas on us! What," He jumped to the side of a building, leaping up. "A," He pushed off the chimney, sailing through the air above the two, "Shame!"

His body stopped and his arms were suddenly engulfed by small portals, a wave of bullets barraging over the courtyard.

Isa was running after Xigbar the instant he was no longer being pinned down by sniper rounds. He held his claymore in front of him as a shield as he barreled towards the Nobody, ignoring the hands jutting out of the portals.

He was starting to tire. Soon his berserker state would wear off, and he would be too exhausted to keep fighting. He lunged at Xigbar's body, swinging with intent to cleave him in half.

Xigbar disappeared but not quite fast enough, receiving a slice in his thigh. A splatter of blood hit the stone ground. The Nobody was crouched on the roof of Cid's house, where he leaned on his good knee and tried to ignore the pain.

Maybe some backup was in order. He wasn't about to go through losing a limb with this raving beast just to get Axel back.

He leapt into the air, running (with a bit of a limp) up some unseen ramp in the sky, and hopped down onto the platform leading to the Bailey. From this safe distance, he looked over.

"Axel, you'll regret betraying us, buddy." He could see Isa preparing another attack and opened a portal in preparation. "Be a good boy now!"

As he hobbled through the swirling doorway of darkness, he was already beginning to plan his next plan of action. Perhaps a less direct approach, maybe he could send Demyx to talk some sense into Axel.

Or they could just destroy the redhead and just worry about retrieving the Key. Either way, this new piece, Isa, in this game of chess would be interesting to figure out.


	4. Catching Up

A/N: Chapter four! Mostly fluff, with a bit of exposition and a little slash. Enjoy!

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Isa started to run after Xigbar, throwing his claymore at the Nobody as he started to disappear into his portal. The claymore passed harmlessly through the air where Xigbar had just been and instead sank four feet through the roof.

Isa suddenly wobbled; exhausted, and with Xigbar gone, the strength his berserker rage lent him was abandoning him as fast as it had come on. He dropped to his hands and knees, wheezing.

It was only then that Isa started to come back to himself. He became aware that he was wounded, but he'd had worse. He'd live.

"Xigbar, that fucking weasel," Axel growled. He was in serious trouble now, how long had Xigbar been tailing them? Whatever, that didn't matter now. Isa was hunched over on the ground, but he was alive. Axel ran up to his side, immediately dropping to Isa's level to get a look at his condition.

"Isa, are you... What just happened?" Axel placed a hand under the man's chin, nudging so he'd make eye contact. "This was all my fault dammit. I knew I shouldn't have stuck around, what's wrong with me," the Nobody muttered to himself, frantically checking Isa for wounds.

Isa was still catching his breath, so he couldn't let out a relieved sigh when he saw Lea wasn't hurt. It was only now that he remembered that he had been in the line of fire and unconscious when Isa had berserked. He presumed Sora or Squall had rescued him from Isa, and for that he was grateful.

"...Berserked," he wheezed out between breaths. "...told you...it happens sometimes."

Isa leaned on one elbow, reaching to grip Lea's wrist reassuringly.

"...not your fault. Don't leave."

With Valor Form finally fading and his clothes back to their original color, Sora dashed out the door. He was just behind Axel in reaching Isa's side.

Sora dropped down onto his knees. "Take it easy, Isa. You... are you okay?"

Axel seemed to ignore Sora at first, focusing on Isa. "It's not like I could leave here anyway, I was already in hot water... Well, I guess this is the best time to say this will _not _be the last we'll see of the Organization," he fixed his eyes on Sora, "Got that?"

Axel wrapped his arm around Isa, helping him to his feet, "Loser..." he looked over to Sora, "Uh, well Xigbar did a number to this place huh... So much for lunch. Anyway, let's head back in and get this jerk cleaned up," he half-smiled at Isa, carefully leading him back to the house, even though Isa didn't seem to need the help.

He suddenly felt a sinking feeling, weird. Did he feel sorry? What the hell just happened, he couldn't help but feel responsible.

Isa had mostly caught his breath and he thought he could stand on his own just fine, but he didn't pull away. Instead, he wrapped his arm around the Nobody's shoulder without calling attention to it.

"...it's fine. Let them come. I'll be glad to handle the-"

Isa was cut off by Yuffie lunging out of the house and slamming into him in a tackle glomp, yanking him away from Axel and knocking him over. He blinked at her as she babbled her relief at him. Aerith was right behind her, ready with a Cure, and Squall was already leaning in the doorway, watching Isa worriedly.

Axel had barely avoided being toppled over, too. The Nobody focused his attention on Isa, who was being half strangled by this overenthusiastic brat. Isa looked back up at Axel with an expression of pure exasperation. And perhaps something else? Only for a moment, frustration flicked over his features.

"Well well, you've certainly got the fan club, Isa. Hope you didn't add to the injuries, _little girl_," Axel looked at Sora uncomfortably, silently asking for a solution. "Is she always like this?" he groaned.

"Yuffie?" Sora grinned at Axel for once, instead of glaring. He just couldn't help it. "Yeah, she is."

Would it kill him to do something nice for Axel just once, for Isa's sake? ... No, no it really wouldn't. "Yuffie, you might want to give Isa a chance to breathe." He advised. "Since the fight just ended and all."

Yuffie blinked at Sora. She opened her mouth to speak, but was cut off by Cid as he came out of the house.

"What the kid said. You lot clear off 'im, he needsta rest." Cid nodded to Axel, then looked back to the kids, waving them away with both hands. "I need YOU lot t'help me get some supplies from the storehouse. We gotta fix this place up."

Yuffie whined and complained, but let go of Isa. Squall and Aerith shared a Look over her head, then nodded and started off down the street. Yuffie trailed after them, grumbling.

Cid jerked his head towards the house, looking at Axel. "Why don' you make sure 'e gets in okay?"

"Huh? Oh sure." Did he just miss something? Axel crossed his arms and smirked at Isa, who was still lying on the ground in shock. "You alright? Looks like you just got your ass kicked by a little girl," he laughed, reaching out a hand to help Isa up. Isa took his hand, letting the Nobody pull him to his feet.

"Hmph. At least I was conscious for the entire fight."

"Yeah, yeah. Leeet's get you inside, you had me worried there," Axel stopped to think about what he just said, but decided not to correct himself. He slinked an arm around Isa, leading the man through the demolished doorway and inside the house.

Isa sat down on one of the only undemolished surfaces. He really did need to sit and rest for a moment; berserking made him stronger and faster, but he had to pay for it afterwards.

He frowned, thinking over what he remembered of what had happened. Clearly this Organization didn't want Lea going off on his own. They _were _sure to come back. Next time they might not be so lucky. Next time-

He had only just found Lea again. He couldn't just let that happen. His fists clenched in his lap, but then he looked up at the Nobody.

"You are not going anywhere without me. Is that understood?"

Axel just closed his eyes, breathing a sigh of relief. "I know, believe me I got it. This is definitely a, uh... _tricky_ situation," he grumbled, plopping down next to Isa. Xigbar was obviously going easy on them, but why did he disappear so quickly? Probably to report back to Xemnas. But being near the Keyblade made this so much more complicated. Axel knew he would die if he was ever confronted on his own, save for by Demyx, so staying by Isa's side seemed the logical choice. Now what kind of choice would his heart make in all this?

Oh, _idle thoughts._

"Well jeeze, whatever happened back there...remind me to never piss you off!" Axel laughed, trying to make light of the situation. "At least I know you got my back next time that jackass shows up... hrm..." he turned to Isa, green eyes darting away from blue ones, "Look, I didn't mean to- It's just- You don't know how hard it's been-"

But Axel was suddenly cut off when Isa leaned over and pressed his mouth over the Nobody's. It was a surprise to Isa as well; he hadn't thought about it, or planned on it. All those long years of loneliness, of regret and of wishing he had done this when he had had the chance had suddenly hit him.

Maybe he didn't know how hard it had been for Lea. But he did know how hard it had been for himself.

He knew it must be obvious he had no idea what he was doing, but at that moment he didn't care. He had waited so long to find out what Lea tasted like. His kisses were rough and desperate, and he kept leaning forward until Lea was half-sprawled across the surface he'd been sitting on.

It didn't seem like Isa was going to let up long enough for Axel to protest, so he decided not to fight back. His hands worked his way around Isa's waist, pulling him closer, pushing himself into the kiss. This was... well, Axel didn't quite have the words for it. A relief in a way? But still shocking. Hmm, whatever, he wouldn't dwell on it too much...

But then Isa's brain caught up with his body. What did he think he was doing? What if-

He pulled away, sitting up and glancing away in embarrassment.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."

Axel immediately let go when Isa jerked away. Uh oh, what _had _just happened. He wasn't sure he could complain... but he remembered, that unlike himself, Isa has a heart. And hearts make things complicated. The last thing Axel wanted to do was get too involved when well...

Lea always thought this moment would be different. That there would be a million emotions running through his head at once, but they'd be good ones of course. Axel could only feel dread slipping over himself, at how empty this moment felt. No, that was a lie, he could...

No he couldn't. He couldn't feel anything.

"Don't be sorry," Axel mumbled, sitting up and placing a hand on Isa's. At least he could try and comfort him.

Isa turned his hand over to grasp Axel's. He gave a bitter little laugh.

"What's become of us, Lea?"

He thought back on those days when they had been children, not even aware of what they had. How much time they had wasted...

"Look at us. Could you have ever imagined, back then, that we would end up like this? We were such fools."

"Were? We still are," Axel tried to grin at Isa. Something wasn't right. Isa should be happy right now, and Axel should be happy too.

Maybe he was? Then what was this other feeling? What right did he even have to call it a feeling? He flopped back, crossing his arms behind his head and sighed.

"C'mon, yer not seriously giving up are you? I'm kinda relying on you, y'know, for that whole heart thing? Don't let me get you down," he nudged his foot at Isa's side.

Isa blinked, turning his head to look at the Nobody. How did Lea always manage to make things seems brighter? Isa gave a wry smile.

"Heh. I'm not about to give up, Lea. You can be sure of that."

There was something that still bothered him, though. It probably would be best to just let it go, but...

"...you know, you never answered my question." At the Nobody's confused look, he continued. "...I didn't ask you if you loved me," he said, in that old tone he'd used back when he was young and teasing his friend. "I asked you if you knew I did."

Axel was a little taken aback. Hrm, as far as his memories as Lea could tell... "Well to be honest, I thought you couldn't stand me," he laughed. "But you still stuck by me, well now it makes sense," he nudged at Isa again, "I'm kidding. I gotta be honest though, I had a feeling something was in there."

At that, the Nobody hopped up and wrapped his arms around Isa, "Well, no regrets. I'm pretty sure it would have been worse if I did know before, well, you know..."

Isa raised an eyebrow at him. "Worse? Well, that's something I never would have expected. Maybe I did you a favor then."

He paused for a moment.

"...I wasn't looking for pity earlier, you know. I just thought you might like to know you were important to someone."

What had gotten into him? He was usually stoic enough to do a jig across the line into emotionally constipated. But with Lea, he wasn't able to stop himself. He supposed it had just festered for too long. He guessed maybe Lea couldn't understand that.

He cleared his throat and stood.

"I suppose I had better find some bandages."

Axel reached out when Isa got up, but he was right. He should patch himself up first.

"Don't be like that, I know you weren't looking for pity," he was important to him too... But who would believe that coming from a Nobody?

"Er, y'know yer not bad at that whole uh, kissing thing y'know," Axel smiled a devilish grin.

Isa paused, turning to look at the redhead.

"...oh really?"

Well. That was a relief at least. He had never kissed anyone in his life; he'd absolutely been winging it, making it up as he went.

Wait, what-

"...what are you suggesting, Lea?"

Axel couldn't help himself. He got up and wrapped his arms around Isa, pulling him just close enough-

"I am suggesting," he searched his thoughts for a moment, "That we get you cleaned up. And then uh," he pressed his lips against Isa's briefly, and flashed a grin. "So where are those bandages, let's get this show on the road."

Isa's startlement was plain on his face. It took him just a moment to recover himself, but the damage was done.

Had that just happened? Surely it had not. That had been his imagination, right? He decided to play it cool.

"...they WERE in the cabinet, but that seems to have become less cabinet and more scrap lumber."

Axel sighed. _Don't tell me after all that he's changed his mind_.

"Alright, I'll have a look. You stay put," he grumbled. Well so much for that. The Nobody walked for all of three steps, when he suddenly froze in place. "Uhhh... where's the cabinet?"

Isa stepped over to where the cabinet had been, shoving aside some of the wreckage until he found the bandages. He strode back to Axel and grabbed his hand, turning it palm up to place the bandages in it. Then he sat back down and, after a brief pause, stripped off his jacket and shirt. He raised an eyebrow at the Nobody then.

"Well? It would be very difficult for me to do this on my own."

Axel just stared for a moment. OH, Isa wanted help with his bandages. "Right. Yeah. Got it," Axel fumbled with the roll for a moment, "Stupid gloves. Ah there we go."

He moved over to Isa to inspect the damage. Not as bad as he thought, but still enough to warrant a good night's rest. The Nobody was careful, smoothing the bandages over his skin gently, making sure not to wrap them too tight. Isa kept his gaze fixed on the wall while Axel worked, sitting as still as if he were carved out of stone. Axel awkwardly crawled over Isa, doing a once over for any more wounds before he placed the roll on a nearby table. It felt odd to be taking care of Isa- No, it felt odd that he was putting trust in Axel to do the job right. Lea never was very swift...

"There, all better," Axel handed him his shirt, and flopped down next to the man, a few inches further away this time.

Isa looked at him in surprise, then sighed, letting the hand holding his shirt drop into his lap. He was still looking away from the redhead when he spoke.

"...do I need to extend you a written invitation?"

Axel rolled his head over towards Isa, moving an arm behind his head. Oh, well then. "I guess you do," he teased, placing his other hand on top of Isa's and attempting to pull the man over. "Y'know, yer colder than me. And I'm the _Nobody_."

Isa allowed Lea to pull him towards himself. He planted his free hand beside the Nobody to lean on it. His heart was beating faster than he was comfortable with, but he chose to ignore it. At least he had one.

"That shouldn't be a surprise for someone who can call fire with his mind."

He was stalling and he knew it, suddenly nervous. What was he supposed to do now? He would play it cool, if only out of habit. Axel waited for a bit, making eye contact with Isa after a moment of hesitating.

"...You're nervous aren't you," a grin plastered his face when he came to this realization.

Isa managed to avoid flushing sheerly by experience and strength of will. He did glance away from Lea's eyes, though, making a short grumbling noise.

"It isn't as though I've ever done anything like this before. Anyone would be."

Axel suddenly burst out laughing. "Oh, oh man. Really? Isa...," he could barely breathe.

But Isa wasn't laughing. Not that he would if it _was_ funny to him anyway.

"Wait you're serious," Axel caught his breath. "Wow, that was... unexpected."

Isa thought he should be mad, being laughed at like that, but there was no way he could be. The sound of Lea's laughter made him feel like his heart was absolutely going to burst. It was the best sound he had ever heard, and for so long he had thought it was lost to him forever.

Axel pushed Isa over, and propped himself over the man leaning in to whisper, "Need some help then?"

Isa couldn't help himself. One hand reached up to the back of Lea's head, pulling him down to meet his lips.

He broke away after a moment to mutter, "Maybe just a little practice."

There we go, Isa's smile had returned. For a moment Axel was envious, after all, he didn't mind where this was going but he felt guilty feeling so empty. But how did he feel- Hrng, he was at it again. This wasn't something casual, wasn't something to be taken lightly at all. And the Nobody knew that, at least in his memories, he was happy. This wasn't like back in the Organization, where y'know, Nobodies. No strings attached. It wasn't complicated, like thinking you had emotions when you couldn't.

"Practice it is then!" All these thoughts didn't stop his hands from moving, dragging Isa into another kiss. Axel knew what to do, but at the same time he was completely unsure of his boundaries. The man underneath him didn't seem to mind too much though.

How would Lea act in this situation? ...He probably would've expected Isa to take control. That was... kind of amusing to think about now.

Isa, though, was having a hard time believing this. This was really happening. Isa had dreamed- was he really prepared for-

Yes.

To hell with hesitation. He'd missed out on too much by hesitating when he was a teenager. He wasn't about to make the same mistake.

Isa gripped Lea's shoulders and rolled them both over so that he was leaning over the redhead. He planted one hand beside the Nobody's head to bear his weight, lacing the fingers of the other hand with Lea's. Idly he noticed how much he liked the look of his blue hair mixing with Lea's bright red as they kissed.

Maybe he didn't know exactly what he was doing, but he was damn well going to give it his best shot.

This felt right.

oOo 0 oOo 0 oOo 0 oOo

Repairing the damage done in the fight was proving to be extremely boring. Perhaps it would help if Sora actually helped with the repairs. But he really wasn't good at building and that sort of thing; even back on the island, he mostly just made Riku do all the work when there was something that needed building or repairs.

He sighed. "Maybe I should go check on Isa and Axel." Sora volunteered as he moved away from the wall he'd been leaning against. "They've been gone a while."

Cid decided it would probably be a good idea to intervene. "They're fine."

"But-"

It was Cid's turn to sigh. "I don't think y'get it. Y'see, Isa and Lea were...close, if ya catch my drift. And they ain't seen each other in a long time."

Sora frowned, obviously not getting at what Cid was trying to say. "Well I knew they were best friends years ago. What's that got to do with anything?"

"...a little more'n best friends. If y'know what I mean."

"Wait, so... like Kairi?

Cid just stared at Sora for a moment. Kingdom Hearts, was the kid really that thick? ... Okay, stupid question. "Y'know what? Never mind. Have at it, kid."

With a bewildered look at Cid, Sora headed over to the still-demolished front door and stuck his head inside. "Everything alright-"

Both of them were on the only not-destroyed surface in the room, with Isa on top of Axel, a little distracted with each other's faces. Sora snapped his mouth shut and just sort of blinked. Wait, what? ... Oh, so _this_ was what Cid had been trying to hint at. Uh, whoops. Well. This was awkward.

Axel was the first to look up. "Oh, uh, Sora. Kid you really should learn to knock... Oh right, the door," Axel didn't plan on moving from his position, keeping his hands right where they were. But Isa practically leapt up, automatically reaching to smooth his hair back and try to look presentable and not like he had just been sucking face. He cleared his throat uncomfortably, looking towards the Keyblade wielder.

"...did you need something?"

This was so uncomfortable. He was not even sure if he was supposed to _explain _to Sora or...

"Uh, no!" Sora replied hurriedly, "No I just wanted... to make sure you guys were alright because you'd been gone a while and I..." He mentally floundered for a bit. How do you get out of a situation like this? Just _how? _"...I'm just gonna go help Leon with repairs now."

And with that he ducked out of the house and hurried across the courtyard to where Leon was working. Hopefully he would actually need help, and not just make Sora go to Cid for work or something.

Isa sighed in frustration, but then picked up his shirt, shrugging it back on. He made a brief "tch" sound, looking at the holes in it. He'd have to find a new one somewhere in this wreckage.

He suddenly felt exhausted. He sat down next to Lea, the weariness obvious in his face. It had barely been any time at all since he had been checking the defense system like he did every day, but everything was different now, and he was completely overwhelmed. Isa rested his elbows on his knees as he dragged his hands down his face, taking a deep breath.

"Hey uh, well that was awkward huh?" Axel tried to laugh it off but Isa just slumped over in response. "Seriously, you alright? It wasn't that embarrassing was it?"

"...I'm fine. I'm just tired." And it was true. He was completely exhausted, physically and emotionally. A reasonable man might just go to sleep. Instead, Isa got up to pick through the wreckage, looking for a coffee press or something that was still intact. At least the computer seemed to still be functioning; it would be a pain to go all the way into the castle to work on decrypting the research notes. Since that was what he planned to do.

"Make yourself useful. Help me find some coffee or something."

No, he wasn't avoiding the subject of what had been going on when Sora walked in. Of course not.

"Uhhhh, I just got here. How am I supposed to know where the damn coffee is?" Axel was a bit annoyed. No, more than _a bit _annoyed.

"Wait a sec, coffee? I'm pretty sure it's too late for coffee, unless uh... y'know..." He wasn't being too obvious, was he? Whatever, he didn't care. Figured Isa'd be a prude and freeze up, it was kind of endearing. Until the man started towards the computer. The Nobody just slumped into his hands. Figured.

Isa gave Axel a look, a bit of a raised eyebrow over his shoulder.

"I plan on starting to decrypt more of these notes. You want your heart back, don't you?"

He turned back to the screen, pulling up a file and trying not to seem too uncomfortable.

"You ought to take your coat off and stay awhile." he pointed out. He wasn't sure what the deal was with that coat, but it seemed to be related to that Organization, and Isa didn't like that one bit. "...if you need other clothes, I can send Aerith to buy some for you in the morning."

"What, you want a show?" Axel laughed in response. "And of course I want my heart back but- Well can't that wait for a sec?" he got up and walked over to Isa, shaking his head at the man's impatient attitude. "Some things never change, huh?"

Isa was already getting to work. The Nobody glanced at the files open on the screen but they didn't make any sense to him. Instead he made a few awkward steps around the room, trying to figure out where the coffee could possibly be. Might as well try and keep him happy.

Isa glanced back at Axel again, then turned back to his computer.

"I think ten years has been waiting long enough, don't you?"

"Alright, well, you've got a point," Axel grumbled. "Well, I dunno about you, but I am EXHAUSTED after today," he yawned while unzipping his coat. "And nah, I'm fine with this thing for now. It's uh... practical." He tossed his coat on top of a nearby couch and flopped on it, sprawling out on the cushions. After a second he looked back at Isa, who was still clicking away on the computer.

"Hey, you should get some rest too y'know. I went and caused a ton of trouble for you today, I doubt tomorrow's going to be much better,"

"I'll rest soon enough. I've been slacking on these decryptions. Well." Isa chuckled to himself for just a moment. "I suppose I didn't have such a good reason not to slack."

He glanced over at Lea then, and had to suppress a gasp at how _thin _he was. It was actually worrisome. Isa stood up, trying to be nonchalant.

"Perhaps some dinner first. I'll need energy if I'm going to be up working on this."

"Oh, you read my mind, Isa. I'm starving! I didn't get to finish my lunch before that idiot stormed in," Axel sighed, "Xigbar's always like that though, can't believe I didn't see it coming." He picked himself off the couch, grabbing his coat to slide it back on. "What'd yah have in mind? A _romantic candlelit dinner_? I'm kidding, Isa," he laughed.

Isa almost sighed. Damn that coat. He rolled his eyes at Lea's joking.

"I figured that out all on my own, Lea. I realize it may come as a surprise to you, but _I_ have not actually managed to get dumber as time has gone on."

"Coulda fooled me," Axel just waved a hand at Isa, dismissing his remark with a grin.

...it felt good to snark at Lea again. Isa would have to do that more often.

"I do not even care what we find to eat. Our options are rather limited, in any case." Isa wondered if Lea had been back to their homeworld before this. He assumed he hadn't been at least since Isa and the others had moved back. Was this his first time on his home soil? "This is rather a patchwork world; we don't exactly have five-star accommodations."

"Well y'know me, I'm not picky. As long as we eat. Hey how about we grab some ice cream after? Just like old times right?" he slipped an arm around Isa's shoulder, tilting his head while waiting for a response.

Isa looked a bit surprised for a moment. "Ice cream? I haven't had sea-salt ice cream in..."

In ten years. Not since that day. He'd avoided it like the plague; it made him think too much of pleasant summer days and laughter and smiling, mischievous green eyes, all gone.

But now...

Isa smiled. "I suppose I could manage to choke some down."

"Hey, don't knock the ice cream," Axel playfully smacked Isa on the shoulder, before heading towards the door. "So ice cream it is! I hope you're buying, 'cuz I'm broke!"

Axel wondered, for a moment, if it'd feel like it used to. When he and Isa shared ice cream before Lea lost his heart. Or if it'd be like those days on the clock tower. Celebrating a day's work done with Roxas and-...hm.

For a moment, it didn't seem like there was a difference.

Isa smirked. "Of course. I should have expected you to mooch off me. But I suppose this once won't hurt."

Isa stuck his hands in his pockets, walking close enough to Lea to occasionally bump into him. The ice cream shop wasn't far, and soon he had two bars in his hand. He handed one to Lea.

"Well, here you are. You'd better be grateful, you freeloader."

"Freeloader? Please," he took a bite out of his ice cream. Yeah, definitely better than old times. "You know you want me around. Next time it'll be my treat," Axel dragged Isa by the arm to go sit down on a nearby bench, immediately flopping down, turning to Isa with an excited look in his eyes.

"You know, after missions with the Organization, I'd do this all the time. Just me, sea salt ice cream and the sunset! It was great, but y'know," he casually stretched an arm over the back of the bench, gesturing at the sky with his ice cream, "It wasn't really that exciting until Roxas showed up. That kid was a real piece of work, but I guess you already can tell from hanging around Sora. Well anyway, now you're here. I never would have expected my luck to turn around like this," his eyes were glued to the sky, just letting his sentence trail off.

Isa crossed one knee over the other as he sat on the bench, crossing his free arm to rest on the elbow of the one holding his ice cream. He gave a brief chuckle.

"I can imagine. I don't know that I could spend every day with Sora without losing my mind. You're a better man than me in that respect, then." He took a bite of his ice cream, letting it melt in his mouth so he could savor the taste. "He does seem to bring all sorts of disruptions in his wake. But," he paused, smirking, "they've managed to be good disruptions every time."

First Sora had restored his home world, and now Lea had come in his wake. Isa would have to be sure he paid Sora back somehow, although he didn't think there was anything he could do that would be worth that much.

Axel thought for a moment on that. Good disruptions? When Roxas joined the Organization, well, he didn't think much of it. Then Castle Oblivion... what a nightmare. Axel's gaze dropped. And then Roxas left the Organization. The Nobody couldn't exactly agree with Isa but, in some respect, Sora did bring them back together. And now there was no turning back.

"How do you think we're going to manage? You don't just walk away from the Organization," Axel changed the subject, but he couldn't help but think. Who would be next? Hopefully not Xigbar again, Xaldin didn't seem like the type, and Xemnas would never get his hands dirty with such a task. That left Luxord and Dem- Ooooh awkward. His teeth gritted for a moment, trying to focus his gaze back on the sky, which was now getting darker.

"It's only a matter of time before they send someone else after me. I mean, you know how valuable I am," he laughed, trying not to seem like _such_ a downer.

Isa's smile fell, his face becoming totally serious. "...yes. I know _exactly _how valuable you are."

Lea would be safe. Isa was not going to let anyone take him away again. He had become strong over the last ten years; strong enough to protect the people important to him. He would protect Lea, or die trying.

"I think you should tell me more about this Organization. I would like to know what I'm up against." The more information he had, the better. He could form a plan, and contingencies and fail safes. He just needed to know what Lea knew. But he wanted to reassure the Nobody.

"We'll manage. They won't get near you, not while I have breath in my body."

Axel's face twisted a bit, trying to decide what to say. After a few moments of chewing on his popsicle stick, he turned to Isa.

"Well, you already met Xigbar. He's got the whole space thing down, and he might have one eye but his aim is, uh," He glanced over Isa's condition, "Well yeah. He doesn't know how to mind his own business either. Old man's probably caught all of us with our pants down at one point." He laughed a bit, until he noticed Isa's unphased expression.

"Uh, it was a joke. Anyway, Xaldin. He's got dreadlocks, like this," Axel pulled his hair into a ponytail for a moment, before it poofed back into its normal spikes, "And he's kind of a pain in the ass. Like, he can't just leave things alone, he's always gotta start something. I guess that's what gets him off, I dunno. Well he uses the wind, and he fights with six lances. I mean it's pretty cool to watch but uhh... Yeah. Him and Xigbar together would spell trouble, they practice together all the time. And by practice I mean uhh- Well yeah, I wouldn't mess with them."

"Xemnas, he's our- _their _leader. You probably won't see much of him. He's kind of a, uh..." Axel pointed to his temple, and proceeded to contort his face like a fool, "Well he's... anyway."

"Demyx, well, if they ever send him against you, consider it your lucky day. He's got a mullet- no, I'm serious. He's a total slacker, I mean the kid can put up a good fight," Axel stopped to think about what he'd just said, whatever. "But he'd rather just take the easy route. If he's been bribed enough he'll probably fight, but you can take him... eheheh." Axel honestly hoped it would never go that route. After all, Axel knew a thing or two about how to get the Nobody motivated. But that was another story. "Uh, oh right. He plays his sitar to control water, and he's tougher than he looks, so don't let down your guard."

"Luxord's the newest remaining member, well, after Roxas left anyway. He's alright, a little too obsessed with gambling though. Another guy who's probably seen us all with our pants down- I'm talking about strip poker! And hey, he knows how to rope yah into it too, don't look at me like that! He manipulates time, and spends most of it toyin' with yah."

"And the rest of Organization XIII... well they've either faded away or walked away. So I guess that makes it easier for us, doesn't it?"

Axel let out a long sigh, "Got that all memorized?"

Isa held one closed hand to his mouth, thinking. Dreadlocks in a ponytail, fighting with lances, with that name, that was probably Dilan. And Xemnas... Ansem? No, he must be the person whose notes he had been decoding, the one claiming to be Ansem. The white-haired one probably, what was his name...? ...well, it didn't matter, Isa had never actually met that apprentice, just seen him from a distance.

Five in the Organization, three virtually unknown elements, while the other two were sure to be deadly. And five fighters on Isa's side, including Lea, but...Isa didn't really want to drag Cid or the littles into this. This was his fight, his problem. He didn't want to put them in more danger than they already faced every day.

"That's all well and good, Lea, but I am more concerned about what this Organization _does_. What is its mission statement, what sort of plans do they usually employ? In other words, how are they most likely to react to what happened today? And what are they trying to achieve?"

"I- hrng..." Did Axel really just go through all that trouble for nothing? "Well, let's walk and talk, it's starting to get dark out and I'm getting tired. You might have to carry me home," he laughed as he picked himself up, waiting for Isa to do the same.

Once they had started walking, Axel picked up his train of thought. "The Organization, well... I was sent to get Roxas back, and they probably _will_ want me back so I don't cause problems. I didn't exactly have a good reputation there as it was.

"They all have their own demons, but as far as I know the only goal," Axel stopped for a moment, "is to regain their hearts. So you know, why do you think I stuck around?

"And your little buddy Sora, he's a key player in their plan. Just like Roxas was at one point. Y'know how the Keyblade releases hearts? Well, they all go back to Kingdom Hearts. And uh, I guess that's how we were supposed to get our hearts back. It's kinda complicated I guess. Actually sounds kinda wacky saying it out loud..."

Isa listened closely to what Axel was saying. Kingdom Hearts...he was sure he'd seen that referenced before. He'd have to check in the morning.

A makeshift door replaced the broken one from before, but Axel payed no mind, barging in like it was his own home. "So uh, where are we sleeping? I'm totally worn out."

Isa rolled his eyes, but he didn't mind. It looked like no one else was back yet; they were probably avoiding them. He shoved aside some wreckage to get at a door that led into a hallway; the third on the right was his room. He opened the door, gesturing to Lea to enter.

"'You may take the bed. I will likely be up rather late working on these notes."

"Hey hey wait a sec, if I take the bed where are you gonna sleep?" he turned to grin at Isa. Isa just Looked at Lea, as if to say _what does it matter to you whether I sleep or not? _"Oh c'mon, don't be like that. Look at you, you look terrible. It's time to sleep," Axel yanked at Isa's arm, but the man wasn't moving. Was Isa always this much stronger than him? Whatever.

"Well I'll just have to find some way to entertain myself, then. You got any magazines or-," he rifled through a few drawers in curiosity, but one drawer had something oddly familiar.

"Wait, not that-!" Isa started to lunge forward to snap the drawer shut, but it was too late. Isa froze dead.

Axel pulled out a worn yellow scarf, holding it out in his hands. His sentence suddenly didn't seem important enough to finish.

He- Was this- Isa...

This was Lea's scarf...?

Axel wasn't sure how to feel. No. Lea was screaming inside.

He'd kept it after all these years. Well, whatever doubt Axel'd had was washed away for sure now.

At a second glance he found a shattered piece of his old frisbee. "Heh, this stupid thing," he muttered. He'd thought these things were so cool when he was with Isa. What an idiot he must have seemed like, but Isa stuck around anyway.

Axel placed the frisbee back in the drawer, and then decided to wrap the scarf around his neck, keeping his back turned to Isa. He must have looked like such a dork, but he placed his hands on his hips and let out a confident, yet shaky, sigh.

He turned his head back to Isa, "Well whaddya think, does it still look good on me 10 years later?" He grinned. "I never woulda guessed you were the sentimental type, Isa."

Despite himself, Isa's face twisted up at the sight. He turned away from Lea, trying to fight back his feelings.

He was not going to cry. He was_ not_. He was only tired; it had been a long, trying day and he was just exhausted, that was all.

His shoulders shook, and he pressed one hand to his face, sucking in a deep breath through his teeth. Control. Control. There was no reason to-

Oh god, Lea was here. He was really here, and Isa-

Axel's grin immediately disappeared when all he could hear was- "Isa, are you- Come here," he put his arms around the man, holding him as close as he could.

"It's okay, I'm here," Was he doing this right? He just held on, hoping Isa wouldn't notice Lea had lost his composure as well.

Isa shuddered when Lea touched him, but he didn't pull away. Nor did he turn his face to the redhead, too embarrassed to let him see exactly how shaken he was.

"...I thought I would never see you again."

Isa bit his lip, hanging his head. "...I'm sorry. So sorry. I was right there and I wasn't able to do anything. One moment you were calling to me and the next- you never even screamed. Did you even see what hit you...?"

Suddenly Axel didn't seem to care about keeping his cool. He took a hand and moved it under Isa's chin, tilting his head up, pressing his lips against the scar on his forehead.

"It wasn't your fault. I'm just- I-"

_'It wasn't your fault.' _Isa hadn't realized how much he needed to hear that from Lea until he had.

Isa tilted his head up and caught Lea's lips. His hands came up to tangle into the redhead's hair.

They were in private. No one was going to walk in. He pulled Lea with him as he scrabbled for the lock on the door with one hand, just to be safe.

And now Axel was being pushed towards the bed, forced underneath the bluehaired man. Uh, was this all he had to do to pick things off from earlier?

And now the damn buttons on Isa's shirt were getting in the way. This routine was all too familiar by now, but something inside Lea skipped a beat.

For Isa, though, this was new territory. Completely new. But he was going to go for it anyway. He had to.

He could not get that coat unzipped fast enough. He hated that coat and everything it stood for. Only after it was out of the way could Isa relax. No, that was a lie; Isa couldn't relax.

Lea's skin was so warm to the touch; it was like there was an inferno blazing just under the surface. Isa loved it. He'd felt like he'd been lost in darkness for so long, but now he thought he could see the light again.

He wasn't going to let Lea slip away from him again.


	5. Under Attack

A/N; Another chapter! Oh shit, is that some plot I see?

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A portal opened in the lounge of the Castle that Never was, and Xigbar stumbled out, blood dripping down his leg and onto the floor. He'd tried to wrap it, to keep some pressure on the slice, but, well, he was no doctor, that was for sure.

"Man, that kid did a number on me." He wouldn't have admitted it to anyone but himself, to everyone else these sorts of things were always 'Oh, I've had worse.' But that was something unexpected. He had just planned on playing around, but that sudden change in the blue-haired brat's demeanor... It took Xigbar off guard.

And Axel... He might be a lost cause. They could maybe afford to lose another body but... They'd already lost a good portion of their numbers and Roxas wasn't any closer to being under their control again. Xigbar knew the score with Axel's betrayal, his new little buddies; he'd learned a lot from snooping and watching the group and from his oh so recent battle. That didn't mean anything good for them.

Then again, Xemnas tended to have a method of finding _some_ way around most obstacles.

He sighed and leaned against the wall of the lounge, leaving a trail of blood against the white surface, before pushing himself away from it. He stood in the room a moment, figuring his balance and where to place his weight, before turning to leave the room, leaning against the frame of the doorway for support.

The sound of footsteps echoed down the empty hall and Xigbar jerked slightly. It would just be his luck that someone would come down the hall and- He looked up at Xaldin's voice and smirked. Better than he could have hoped.

How was it that Xaldin always managed to wander right into Xigbar whenever he needed to? Way too many years of knowing him, that's how. So it really wasn't a surprise when he turned a corner to see Xigbar leaning against the door frame. Though the bleeding, nasty slice on his leg was a bit more unexpected.

Why had Xigbar been sent out again? Ah, right. Axel had gone down to antagonize the Keyblade and hadn't come back yet. Xaldin folded his arms over his chest. "So I take it that things didn't go quite as planned."

"Things went mostly as planned," Xigbar replied, "just until I tried to actually, y'know, get him back..." No reason to lie, least of all to Xaldin. "You'll never believe what I found, though. Surprised me too." He gestured lightly to his leg. "Obviously."

Xaldin eyed the injury. That looked more then a little serious, and nothing at all like an injury from a chakram. Well, maybe if it had just nicked him in passing. But even then it wasn't quite right. Had someone intervened when Xigbar tried to grab Axel?

The Sniper held out a hand to the taller man, expecting him to help. Xaldin did more than just take his hand. He ducked under Xigbar's arm and wrapped one arm around his torso, letting Xigbar lean against him and take his weight off the injured leg. It was a little awkward, due to the fact that Xaldin was much taller then the other. But nothing they weren't use to.

"You remember the old days, back as Ansem's apprentices? You remember that kid that always hung out with Axel, when he was a kid?" Xigbar chuckled. "The blue haired kid. Isa. Isa and Lea... Well, Axel found out his little buddy ain't dead. Personally I thought he was a goner too after the Gardens sunk, but..."

He winced. "Nastier temper on him than I ever remember."

And up went one eyebrow. "Isa? That little brat? Didn't think that he would have survived." Wait one second. Something wasn't right with that. "Are you saying that Isa gave you this? _Isa?_"

Xigbar glanced up at the other man, a small frown on his face. "Yeah, yeah, he was just a little more of a handful than I had been anticipating, y'know?" So, he hadn't taken into account something completely random and bizarre happening; ie, Isa freaking out. It was an honest mistake. If Xigbar wasn't so fast, he probably would have been hurt worse.

Xaldin couldn't help but grin at that idea. No way. Not little, unemotional, always-dignified Isa. But then again, it had been almost ten years. If he had survived the darkness taking over Radiant Garden, maybe he had changed enough to fight Xigbar and score a few hits if Lea was on the line. Xigbar _had_ said something about a temper, after all.

Only one way to find out. "So, you going to tell me what happened?"

As they hobbled a little down the hallway, the Freeshooter sighed and shrugged.

"Well, you know I was keepin' an eye on the situation. Watchin' Axel mingle, waiting for a good chance to go at them. Man, that kid Isa really grew up. He's a pretty good lookin' guy." He shrugged. "Anyway, yadda yadda, attacked, went for Axel, the kid flipped the fuck out, man. He just went insane. Like, I think his hair was standing on end, he was just going berserk."

Xigbar sighed a little. Talking and walking, it was a pain when his leg was throbbing like crazy. "Anyway, he was a fast little shit. Not to mention he had a sword longer than I am tall. I was dodging him pretty well but, eh, just slipped up a little. It's no big deal though."

Freaking out, wielding a sword longer then Xigbar, and fast enough to land a decent hit on him? Well that _definitely_ didn't sound like the Isa they knew back when they were the Apprentices.

"Doesn't look like 'no big deal', Xig. That's a fairly nasty injury." Xaldin said, glancing over at Xigbar. "But regardless, all that about Isa doesn't sound good. He could be a problem in the near future. You should tell Xemnas, see what he can come up with."

It was quiet for just a bit as they made their way down the hall, blood from the cut leaving little splotches of red on the white floor. Someone would probably raise a fit about that later. Then Xaldin shrugged as best he could. "Or, hell, make a meeting out of it."

Their numbers had been cut, sure. But with the people they had left, you never knew what kind of ideas would get tossed out into the open. Maybe they'd come to a useful conclusion for dealing with Isa that way.

The Freeshooter winced, leaning a little more heavily on Xaldin to keep upright. Okay, maybe it was a little more severe than he was making it out to be.

"A meeting might be a good idea," he muttered, trying to keep pace. "Xemnas's gotta know eventually. I was thinking maybe sending Demyx down there, he might be able to talk to Axel. You know how he is, heh, thinkin' with his dick rather than his head..." At least they had that going for them in Axel's case. Roxas, well, he was still a different story.

"Who knows. He might just end up having the pair of them destroyed. Hard to say which'll make our lives easier though, y'know?"

Xigbar finally had to stop. He pulled on Xaldin's arm to tell him to stop moving as he tried to cope with the wound in his leg. Warm blood was running down his leg and pooling in his boot.

"Fuck, man, that little brat did a number on me." Xigbar's voice was slightly strained. "I don't know what was up with him but it was some intense shit. I'm thinking that getting rid of him might be a grand idea but..." He sighed, regaining his composure. Then he glanced up at the Lancer, a familiar, devious glimmer in his eyes, an epiphany. "Or... We can try to add a new member to our ranks..." He grinned despite the pain. What a brilliant idea...

"What, turn Isa into a Nobody and pull him into the Organization?" Would that really be a good idea? It probably wouldn't hurt to try. If Isa was really that strong, he'd be a valuable addition to the Organization. And if he didn't turn into a Nobody when the Darkness got him, well.

If that happened then he would be out of their hair. Xaldin grinned widely at the suggestion. "Not a bad plan, Xig. Not a bad plan at all." Then he looked down at Xigbar's leg again, and the grin faded. "We should really patch your leg up before we get a meeting going."

Or before any excitement started, to be honest. That cut just would not stop bleeding, and Xigbar passing out from blood loss would be rather unfortunate. Though it might take more than just bandages, unless it was one of those wounds that bled a lot but wasn't very deep.

Xigbar chuckled softly despite the pain.

"We could name him Saxi." He looked up to Xaldin, then down to his leg, and sighed.

"Alright. Well, you'd better open a portal, maybe your room, mine's a fuckin' mess. Probably should send a Dusk or two down here to clean up, too." He was leaving a trail of blood down the hallway, and that was always pretty ominous looking.

He staggered a little. "Better make it fast 'cause...wow...Shit is getting fuzzy."

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_...where was he? He couldn't remember what he'd been doing. Something about Lea-_

_Oh, right. The castle. They were going to see what was inside. Today they would definitely make it in. Wait, they were already inside. Why was it so cold?_

_Lea turned back to smile at him. Then, the ground opened up. Isa screamed as they both sank into the tarlike darkness at their feet. There were claws pulling at him, tearing, and lambent yellow eyes all around. Nearby, Lea was screaming, tendrils of black wrapped around his limbs and dragging him under- no, now his face was longer, and he had tattoos, and then only his face was above the darkness and then it was pouring into his mouth and cutting off the sound of his voice and then he was gone beneath the surface of the black pool. And Isa was screaming and tangled up too, being dragged down, blackness pressing against his face and holding back his limbs and he couldn't __**breathe**__ an-_

Isa shot straight up with a terrified gasp, fighting to free himself from whatever he was tangled in. Something moved nearby, then something grabbed his arm and his hand snapped back. He heard a yelp and his arm was free and groping for his sword.

Wait- his claymore, where was- it wasn't there?

Isa finally realized where he was and what was happening. He had just had a nightmare, that was all. That wasn't unusual.

What _was_ unusual was that, a) he was naked, B) his claymore was gone, and, oh yeah, Lea was in his bed in a similar state of undress. He groped around on the floor for his pants. He needed to find his claymore. When had he last seen it? The fight. He'd had it when he Berserked, and presumably for the rest of the fight, but he hadn't had it when he came to and he had been so distracted he hadn't even noticed. Stupid. Stupid, stupid, _stupid. _Hadn't he sworn never to be outside arm's reach of a weapon? What if they had been attacked in the night?

He needed to find that claymore. He jerked his discarded shirt on, not caring how destroyed it was.

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Isa had been tossing and turning all night, so it wasn't much of a surprise when the man jerked upright all of a sudden. Axel was half asleep, but conscious enough to grab for Isa's hand in an effort to calm him down.

And then the Nobody felt a sharp sudden jolt to his face, "YOW, what the hell? Isa w-what are you doing?" he yelped. He was suddenly awake, and aware of just how cold Isa's room was. Oh right, where were his clothes...

"H-hey, where yah going?" Axel pushed himself up sleepily, but flopped back on the bed a second later, rolling to his side to try and make out what Isa was up to. In the moonlight he could see... Well what couldn't he see.

"Answer me, c'moooon..." he drawled, trying to force himself out of bed to find Isa leaving the room in a hurry. He was probably off to sneak in some research notes or something. Axel didn't hesitate to jump out of bed after him though, he wasn't going to take any chances either. That idiot said they were staying by each others' side, and here he goes- Axel grumbled, throwing on his clothes as quickly as he could.

Isa paused for just a moment when Lea came out of the room behind him.

Wait, that's right. Lea had been there. Maybe he saw what happened? Isa turned towards the redhead.

"I need to find my claymore, immediately. Did you see what happened to it?"

Oh that's what the big hurry was about... wait a second. Axel scowled.

"You idiot, you're the one with all the big talk about sticking together and yer running out unarmed? Even I'm not that stupid." That was a lie. "And you coulda at least been a bit more gentle waking me up, I swear if I have a bruise in the morning..."

Isa huffed. "I would be fine, how long could it take me to-"

Wait, bruise? Isa peered at Lea's face; he hadn't noticed it before in the darkness, but now that he looked he could see that the Nobody's face was red on one side. He frowned, reaching to touch it.

"...did I strike you?" Damnit, how could he- he hadn't meant to do that. It must have been while he was disoriented. He frowned deeply. "...I'm sorry. It was an accident."

Axel winced at the touch, but it didn't hurt that much...it just surprised him. Isa being...kind?

The Nobody just grinned back. "Whatever. Just don't get my face next time, jerk," he teased. "We'll probably both have bruises anyway from uh," he trailed off. But his grin didn't fade. Axel held open the door, peering into the darkness in hopes of seeing the elusive claymore. He pointed towards the rooftops, "I'm pretty sure you were messing Xigbar up somewhere over there. You don't remember, do you?"

Isa exited the house while Lea held the door, peering towards the rooftops he'd indicated.

"No. I never remember anything that happens in that state."

Ah, there it was. Embedded in a roof. He whistled lowly to himself- that was pretty far. He mentally patted himself on the back- until it occurred to him that getting up there to retrieve the sword would be difficult. At least most of the houses in this area weren't occupied yet, so he didn't think he'd ruined anyone's home.

Isa walked to the side of the building, setting his hands on his hips and peering up. Well, the stones of the walls were uneven enough. He could probably climb it. He spat into his hands and rubbed them together, carefully starting his way up the wall.

Axel followed after Isa, and watched the man scale the wall, making sure he didn't fall.

"Y'know, I didn't offer my help for nothing. I coulda just-" but Isa had already reached the roof, "-...used a portal to get up there. Oooor you can do it the hard way, whatever."

Isa grunted softly as he pulled himself over the edge of the roof. He dusted himself off as he stood, smirking to himself. It might have been something small, but scaling the wall made him feel accomplished anyway. After everything that had gone on that day, he supposed he just needed to do something simple and normal. He strode over to his claymore. After taking a moment to get a good grip, he wrenched it out of the roof.

Axel glanced around the area; he felt a bit paranoid after today's events. But rightfully so. He heard a loud crack as Isa ripped his claymore from the roof, and looked up, waiting to make sure the man would get down alright. Was Isa always this way? Lea remembered the blue-haired boy playing it safe, while he always came home with scrapes and bruises. He guessed some things did change.

Isa strode over to the edge of the roof, smirking down at the redhead.

"What's wrong?" Isa called down to him. "Have you lost your sense of adventure, Lea?" It was so funny; he'd been so uptight as a teenager. He supposed he was still uptight, if he was honest with himself, but he'd become much more prone to risking life and limb over the years. Apparently Lea had become more cautious. He couldn't help but chuckle.

"Hey I hope that's not a challenge! C'mon, get down here. We've had enough adventure for one night, I'm tired!" Axel complained. The day had really worn him out, but he had no clue what had gotten into Isa. Maybe he was just being lazy, but the idea of climbing back into bed seemed divine. Even more so considering his company.

"Seriously, get down here. I've got a weird feeling, Isa," he twirled around, making sure he wasn't letting his guard down. He was pretty exhausted after all.

Lea, worrying? 'Enough adventure for one night'? Now that was even funnier. Isa couldn't contain a brief laugh.

"You really have grown up, haven't you?" he called down. "Alright, watch out below."

Isa dropped his claymore so that it fell at the base of the wall, sticking upright into the ground when it struck just from its weight.

"Grown up? That was a joke right?" Axel dodged out of the way of the falling Claymore, looking up expectantly to see how the man was planning on getting down.

The sound of the metal striking the pavement, however, disguised another sound; Isa didn't hear the dark portals opening nearby. He turned around to climb back down, just in time to see something flashing in the darkness and coming straight at him. He turned his body defensively, but some sort of concussive force, like a strong wind, struck him, and then he was falling backwards into open space.

"ISA!" Axel jumped back, readying himself to break the fall. He managed to catch him; granted the Nobody totally collapsed under the weight. Axel found himself sprawled underneath a mess of blue hair, a few feet from where Isa's claymore fell.

"H-hey, you alright?"

He turned his attention to the rooftop, where familiar black dreadlocks were tossed in the wind.

...So much for climbing back into bed.

"Well what do you know?" Xaldin approached the edge of the rooftop and smirked down at Isa and Axel. "Little Isa, come back from the grave. Didn't think you had survived when the Heartless took over Radiant Garden."

Xigbar had downed several potions in order to be ready to go back out. Sure, he probably shouldn't have gone so soon, still being injured as he was, but he was the only one who'd seen Isa in action and knew what he was capable of. He'd just have to back Xaldin up.

The gunner moved out beside Xaldin, smirking down at the pair on the ground. Who would have guessed they'd make it so easy for them? Didn't even have to destroy anything.

"Told ya," he chuckled, looking over at the Lancer. Xigbar turned his attention back to Axel and Isa, a grin spreading across his face.

"Ready for round two, boys? Ain't gonna be pretty so you'd better give each other a little kiss good bye~."

Isa pushed himself up with a groan, his head snapping up to look at the rooftop. His eyes narrowed when he saw the man standing there. Dilan.

Isa didn't hate Dilan nearly as much as he hated Braig, but he wasn't exactly fond of him either. He wouldn't cry over killing him if the former guard went for Lea. Even if Dilan used to be able to throw Isa around with one hand, that wasn't going to happen now. He wasn't "Little Isa" anymore.

Isa leapt up to snatch up his claymore, wrenching it easily out of the ground. He backed up so that he was directly between Lea and the two Nobodies, scowling up at them.

"If you think you'll get at Lea that easily, you've got another thing coming. First you'll have to go through me."

The Freeshooter raised a brow, looking unimpressed. Of course, he knew what this guy was capable of, but he couldn't let on that Isa actually had something going for him. With Xaldin on his side, though, it would be a pinch.

"Heh, ain't that cute. Calls him 'Lea', Xaldin." He gave the man a nudge in the side. "Adorable, isn't it?"

Then in a swift movement he called forth his guns, grasping them tightly and holding them at his sides.

"You gonna do all the fighting once again, Isa? Heh." Well, if that was how it would be, so be it. Isa would probably still be worn out from earlier. It wouldn't be much to put Axel down, either.

He looked up at Xaldin.

"Care to do the honors, Xal?" He gave him another nudge and added, "I'll back you up."

Xaldin's smirk turned into a grin. "Gladly, Xig."

Six lances appeared from thin air around Xaldin. He grabbed two of them, letting the other four float freely on the breeze. And then he didn't drop off the roof so much as he leapt off it at Isa, the loose lances flashing towards him at an angle to bypass the claymore.

Once again, Isa had a momentary flash of jealousy for these people that could literally call their weapons from thin air. But he didn't have time to think about that with Xaldin's weapons coming at him. Isa swung his claymore in a wide arc, knocking three of the lances away. The fourth he sidestepped, batting it away with the back of his arm. Dilan would have to try harder than that. Isa rolled to the side as Xaldin came down at him, popping up to his feet and lunging with his claymore the moment the Nobody touched ground.

Axel jumped to his feet once he felt Isa get up. He dusted off his coat and looked to the rooftops to where Xigbar still stood.

"Oh, they sent the big guys after me. Give it a rest, I'm not coming back." The Nobody didn't know where all the talk came from, but he was screwed. Really screwed.

There was no way they wanted him back this badly. There had to be a catch.

Maybe they just wanted him dead.

But Xaldin was attacking Isa? What was wrong with this picture...

Axel summoned his chakrams, immediately sending a spiral of flames in the Lancer's direction.

"As a matter of fact I WILL be fighting, 'cuz your problem is with ME."

A small portal opened and Axel's chakrams disappeared into its depths, reappearing a little ways away. Xigbar hopped up from the roof, firing his guns at Axel. He hadn't just been talking shit when he said he'd have Xaldin's back.

"C'mon, kid, there's two here, we can even this out right now!" he cackled, landing a little ways away from Axel and firing another round of shots. Xaldin could handle Isa for now, he was better at close combat than Xigbar was. In the meantime, he could keep an eye on Axel.

"Axel, y'know you can solve all this easy, right? Just come back to the Org..."

Xaldin touched ground, only to quickly dodge the incoming claymore. Isa's speed would have been surprising, if Xigbar hadn't told him about it. Axel deciding to jump into the fight made things a little more interesting, but Xigbar would ensure that nothing came of that.

The lances that Isa knocked to the side spun on the spot and homed in on Isa's exposed back. The Lancer himself darted forward, aiming to knock aside the claymore and get a few solid hits in.

The flashes of flame in Isa's peripheral vision momentarily drew his attention. Dammit, what was Lea doing? He was going to get himself killed! Isa spun where he stood, repelling the lances coming at him from behind. He needed to get to Lea; without stopping his momentum, he rolled beneath Xaldin's reach, popping up behind him and completely ignoring him to barrel at Xigbar. Isa leapt into the air, swinging his claymore down at Xigbar with all his might.

Xigbar was chuckling, caught up in taunting Axel, firing shots at him, teasing him, and deflecting attacks. It was only just barely that he noticed Isa charging down on him. He leapt out of the way, bracing himself on his bad leg by accident and letting out a hiss of pain.

_Fuck_. He was obviously in pain but he didn't let that stop him, shots being fired both at Isa and Axel while he regained his composure enough to teleport to the roof of the house. Xaldin had better get Isa's attention because Xigbar couldn't handle Isa again, not when he was injured like he was.

Axel ran to dodge Xigbar's attacks, summoning his other chakram and sending both in the Sniper's direction. Axel did not want to take on these two. Why couldn't they have sent Demyx? His opponent was clearly in pain from earlier, but Axel still didn't stand a chance. He was better off letting Isa handle him, while... well, dealing with Xaldin would take a bit more finesse than playing hide and seek.

But on second thought, Isa wouldn't last long either. Was this really up to Axel to deal with? Things couldn't possibly get more out of control...

"Isa, you take care of Xigbar. I'll get Xaldin off your back- Don't give me that look, you're still worn out from earlier," Axel let out a long sigh. _Just look at what I've done_.

The Lancer swerved on the spot and summoned his lances to him once again. Okay, not good. Xigbar was at a disadvantage with Isa going after him. Fighting Axel wouldn't be much trouble for him, but how long could Xigbar hold out against Isa with that leg?

... Of course, this might work in their favor, if Xigbar could hold his own for a bit...

Xaldin charged at Axel with the full force of all his lances, slicing and stabbing at anything exposed or unprotected. He was ready to deflect or knock aside any chakram the second he had to. Hadn't Xigbar said that Isa flipped out when he had attacked Axel? Well then. Time to see if pushing his panic button worked every time.

Isa followed Xigbar's progress up to the roof with his eyes; he was just about to decide not to bother with him, when he heard Lea cry out from behind him. Isa spun around to see Lea frantically dodging a whirlwind of blades.

They weren't trying to get him back. They were trying to kill him.

No. That was NOT happening. These bastards were NOT taking Lea again.

Everything whited out.

Isa lunged forward, seizing Axel by the hood of his coat and bodily flinging him out of the way. Then he was on top of Xaldin, knocking his lances aside with his claymore.

Axel hit the ground on his feet and stumbled until he caught himself. He suddenly had no control over what Isa did as the other man was quite content with attacking Xaldin. Which left Xigbar for him, someone he didn't really want to deal with. It was better than standing around just watching, though. He had to watch Isa's back, especially when he was still injured. This definitely wasn't part of the plan, but there was no reasoning with the man now.

One moment Xaldin was attacking Axel, the next he'd been knocked to the ground by a very pissed off looking Isa, whose hand was a little too close to his throat for comfort. _Well, looks like Xig was right._

He grabbed Isa's arm and twisted it sharply, tossing him off to the side. In an instant Xaldin had rolled back onto his feet and leapt toward Isa. The lances he wasn't holding flashed forward ahead of him to strike, swerving around the claymore at the last second.

Isa kept in constant motion, leaping, dodging, and weaving to keep ahead of the flashing blades. The lances nicked his skin, but he managed to avoid injury for the time being. He no longer had any concern in his mind for Xigbar or Axel, focused exclusively on the man in front of him.

A wide swing of his claymore sent the lances flying from the air pressure, and then he had closed the distance between himself and the Nobody, swinging his claymore down like a hammer. Xaldin jerked to one side to avoid the claymore and sent a wall of solid air slamming into Isa to buy him just enough time to summon his weapons back to him. Then he charged, following the other's motions with a whirlwind of lances.

Isa raised his claymore to block the wall of air, skidding back along the paving stones. He was starting to slow down; he had never Berserked more than once in such a short period of time, and his injuries from earlier were sapping his strength. He zigged and spun, just barely weaving in and out of the storm of blades. As he swung his claymore to clear a path to Xaldin, though, he was too slow in dodging one of the lances. It scored a hit, slicing a deep gash open diagonally across his back. Blood spattered onto the stone, but it could have been a paper cut for all Isa reacted to the wound. He paid it no mind, using the space he had cleared for himself to dive at Xaldin. He jabbed his claymore forward in an attempt to impale the Lancer.

Xaldin sidestepped the claymore, though not quite fast enough to avoid injury all together. The tip of one spike clipped his side, but he wasn't about to let that slow him down. Not when he'd finally gotten a good hit like that in. Xigbar hadn't been exaggerating; Isa was fast and strong and totally focused on smashing his face in. He'd make a good addition to the Organization.

A flurry of blades shot towards Isa again, while Xaldin attacked from a different angle. He was using the wind to aid him in his attacks now. First pushing at Isa from one direction, then another, intent on sapping his strength by making him work harder to stay in one place.

Axel was now focusing on Xigbar, trying to make sure the two of them didn't gang up on Isa. The sound of ripping fabric caught his attention and he glanced back to see blood splatter all over the concrete. But Isa kept going, slicing away at Xaldin- he wasn't going to be able to keep this up much longer. Axel wasn't even sure how long he could hold off Xigbar, but at least he was injured. Man, what to do what to do.

He couldn't just ignore Isa's injuries; it was time to intervene. The Lancer was just toying with him now, but why was he going easy on Isa? It just didn't make any sense. Axel flung both of his chakrams in Xaldin's direction- He knew it wouldn't do much, but it'd be enough to get his attention off of the Berserker for just long enough...

Xigbar knew just what Xaldin was up to. It was a waiting game now, one where he occasionally threw shots over at Axel to keep him busy. Which was what he did once again as he saw Axel trying to take Xaldin from behind.

"Now now, that's not very polite!" he cackled, teleporting a little ways away from Axel and firing another round of shots at him. If he could get Isa's attention, Xaldin could go in for a killer blow and finish the job. It shouldn't take this long to subdue someone.

"C'mon Axel, let's play a little here. Your boyfriend's busy so you'll have to make do. Don't worry, I'll go easy on ya."

Xaldin dodged to the side, escaping both the chakram and the claymore. If he had to fight Axel as well as Isa- wait, no, Xig had him again. Good. Between attacks, Xaldin darted in as close as his dared and stabbed at Isa's shoulder with once lance.

Isa was too exhausted, too slow- the lance hit home, driving into his shoulder and shocking him out of his Berserking. Isa reeled back, disoriented for just a second. Everything was blurry; his vision was totally doubled. He staggered backwards as quickly as he could out of sheer instinct.

...oh man, he was in real trouble. Isa meant to take just a second to take stock of his surroundings, but he was slammed with a pounding headache and a wave of dizziness. He'd lost quite a bit of blood, it would seem.

A lance came at him, and he barely deflected it. His claymore felt like it weighed a ton; he could barely lift it. At this rate, he was pretty sure he was going to die.

At least he hoped Lea had the sense to run.

Xigbar's taunts were not helping Axel's focus. He had failed at distracting Xaldin (he had kind of expected to fail anyway), now he could only hope Isa would be able to hold his own. He dodged the Sniper's fire as best he could, but Xaldin was the real problem right now- and Isa suddenly did not look so great. This was serious. There was no way they were finishing this fight. Axel had to do something.

And it was brash and stupid but it was the only option he had. _Run._

"Sorry Xig, I'd love to stay, really. But I can't let you have too much fun, you heartless bastard," Axel launched another chakram towards Xaldin. This time he was serious. Flames erupted from the ground, giving Axel a small barrier as he opened a dark portal, dragging Isa behind him.

Why did he feel like he was always running away? At least Isa would be safe.

...Wait, he would be safe, right?

Isa hadn't even seen Lea come towards him, but then he was suddenly yanked into-

The Darkness. It felt like he'd been dunked into ice water. He sucked in a choked, wheezing gasp. It was so cold. In an instant, he was shivering violently. It wasn't just the cold; the Darkness around him was too much like the Heartless, too much like that day. It terrified him, in a way he didn't realize anything could.

Blinding pain lanced through Isa's head. He could barely think to keep moving. And his scar was _burning_. No, it would be more accurate to say that it was so bitingly, awfully cold that it just _felt _like it was on fire. Tendrils of darkness were rising from the old wound like steam, further obscuring his vision. He had no idea where he was going; he didn't-

Focus. Isa needed to focus. But the Darkness lapped at him, threatening to wash him away in its currents. He held on to the only solid things nearby; his death grip on his claymore, and the feeling of Lea's hand clamped around his arm.

One foot in front of the other. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other.

Suddenly this didn't seem like such a great idea. Axel wore that coat for a reason, if he could just rush to...wherever he was headed...Isa would be fine. But the look on his face said otherwise.

Why did Axel stick behind earlier... look at all the damage he'd done.

He guessed Isa thought it was worth it. Axel wouldn't argue, as long as he was okay after all this. He stepped out of the portal, still grasping Isa's arm, leading him out of the Darkness.

As soon as they were clear of the portal, Isa leaned over and vomited, just barely avoiding Axel's boots. _Warmth. _It was such a relief. The pain in his scar subsided into a dull throb, the tendrils of darkness dissipating. But his sight didn't clear and the shivering didn't stop. He tried to start walking after Lea again, wobbling forward unsteadily for a few steps.

Oh. He was bleeding pretty badly, wasn't he. That wasn't...

Isa couldn't stay on his feet anymore. His claymore clattered to the ground, and he was right behind it. Axel gasped, whipping around.

_"ISA!"_


	6. Confrontation

A/N: Welcome back! The plot keeps moving forward this chapter, so enjoy!

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"Isa!" Axel dropped to his knees, leaning over the collapsed man. This was a horrible idea, but they'd be dead for sure if the Nobody had just let them stay to fight. Shit, but this was definitely not something a potion could cure...

"Damnit, Isa, tell me you're still there. I- I gotta get you some help." C'mon, he just needed to know he was still alive. Where the hell was he going to get help, though?

Then Isa visibly shuddered. Alive, then. He reached out a hand to flop over Axel's, trying to reassure him.

"I-I'll be f-fine." he muttered through chattering teeth. "I-I just need to r-rest a bit." Okay, that was an obvious lie. Axel didn't know what to do. Should he try moving him? He didn't want to make Isa's wounds worse than they already were. But he was speaking at least. That much was a good sign.

"You don't look so hot, Xaldin really went to town on you. I'm going to get you some help," he placed his hand on Isa's cheek- he was shivering nonstop, he had to get a move on. "I know someone who owes me a favor, just promise me you'll still be here when I get back, huh?"

Isa pushed himself to roll over onto his back. He winced when his wound touched the ground, but at least this way he could see Lea while he talked to him, and his face wasn't in the dirt. He smirked, trying to reassure the redhead.

"W-well, if you r-really needed my life, you'd be welcome t-to it. B-but if it's all the s-same to you, I'd rather hang onto it if it's n-not being put to good use." He thought he might be getting the shivering under control. That was good. But lying in the dirt sucked.

"M-make yourself useful and h-help me sit up before you go. D-don't forget my claymore."

"Hrng. Still gonna boss me around, Isa? Heh, fine," Axel leaned over, holding onto Isa as gently as he could, propping him against the nearby stone walls. There was blood everywhere, the Nobody winced at the sight. How was this man still conscious? He walked over to the claymore, picking it up off the ground, a bit surprised at it's weight. "Sheesh, how do you carry this thing?" Isa was really something else now. He dragged the sword over, leaning over Isa and placing the handle next to him.

"Hopefully you won't be needing this, but y'know, with our luck right now, heh," he grinned at Isa, but he was certain he was feeling what he used to call 'worry'.

Isa reached up and grabbed Axel's coat chain, tugging him down to meet his lips briefly before releasing him.

"...I'll still be here, but that isn't an excuse to drag your feet." he admonished him, half joking. "...Get moving."

"Right right, I'm movin' I'm movin'," Axel got to his feet, dusting the dirt off his jacket. With a flick of his hand a portal was summoned, darkness swirling out of the ground. He turned to Isa before stepping in, a grin on his face and another flick of his hand goodbye.

No no, see you later. Yeah.

Isa slumped slightly once Lea disappeared into the portal. Alright, just focus on resting and recuperating. He shut his eyes, just for a moment.

...really just for a moment. He heard a sound nearby, and opened his eyes.

...uh-oh. Isa wasn't sure if it was the darkness he'd just come from, or just that he was an easy target, but apparently this area was not clear of Heartless. He groped for his claymore, shoving himself up to his feet by leaning against the wall.

...well. If he wanted to keep his promise, he couldn't slack off.

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They had been close. So very, very close. Whatever state Isa had been in had finally faded. But before they could act on it, Axel intercepted and portaled both him and Isa away to Kingdom Hearts only _knew _where. Xaldin probably would have been more worried if he didn't know that in his current state, there was a good chance that the dark portal would do all the work of turning Isa for them.

Of course, now the question was what to do. They had no idea where the pair of them had ported to, which made going after and retrieving them a whole lot harder. Xaldin turned to look up at Xigbar, his lances vanishing in a light breeze. "Well, now what?"

Xigbar was also a little disappointed to see the two men leave so suddenly. But there was still time, and he was sure this wouldn't be the last time they saw the pair. He sighed and let his guns disappear, moving over to Xaldin's side and looking at where their renegade and potential newbie had disappeared.

"We wait," he replied, shrugging and reaching a hand over to touch the tear in Xaldin's side. He smoothed the blood from the wound between his pointer and thumb, making Xaldin wince. Xigbar looked back to where their targets had gone. "What the hell else can we really do, you know? Heh. We can send some guys to patrol around here, we still have other missions to do."

He sighed and put his hands on his hips, looking at the cracks in the ground from where Isa had landed hits.

"See what I mean about that kid? Fast and powerful."

Xaldin crossed his arms with a sigh, surveying the damage from the fight. "Yeah, you were right. That kid is nothing to mess with anymore."

He'd take a look at the slice later, when he had all his things and could deal with it properly. So for now... "Come on, Xig. Let's head back to the castle and just leave some guys here to deal with stuff, like you suggested."

The waiting game had started. With any luck, it'd only be a matter of time before Isa's Nobody was in their hands.

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Axel stepped out of a portal, finding himself in an old, dilapidated mansion. Footsteps echoed through the empty space as he made his way up the stairs, past the door, and into the blindingly white room.

A blonde girl jumped, gasping, as he entered the room. But then she turned towards him, setting down her sketchpad. The picture she had been drawing was visible on the page; Axel, alongside a vague, undefined human figure.

"Hey long time no see, Namine. I don't suppose I could cash in that, uh, favor, huh?"

The girl frowned, calling out the door.

"Riku? Come in here, please!"

Riku hadn't been very far when Namine called for him, and it had only taken him a short while to get to her room. And he had picked up on Axel's scent before he had even started talking to Namine. Fire and darkness; wasn't exactly hard to miss. DiZ wasn't gonna let him hear the end if this if he found out.

He arrived right as Namine was asking something about an apparent favor. "Axel. What's this about a favor?"

Axel looked behind as Riku entered the room. Oh boy, an audience to see him grovel.

"I uh, I'm in a bit of trouble right now. Y'know, on the run from the Organization and all that. Well, long story short, they really messed up a uh...friend. Had to drag him through the darkness to escape, he was pretty wounded already. I didn't know what else to do. But he's in trouble unless we can do something..."

His eyes dropped to the floor, shifting his weight as he wondered, "Why the hell would they go after Isa when I'm the one who ran away... It just doesn't make sense."

Namine frowned as Axel spoke. So he HAD decided to go against the Organization after all. And this friend...was this the person she had begun drawing? Wait, the name was-

"Isa? _Sora's _friend Isa?"

She knew an Isa from Traverse Town; she had even been inside his memories, tampering with them to make him forget Sora while he slept. But she had only had access to his memories of Sora. She had been vaguely aware of Axel knowing someone by that name, but she had never made the connection, never looked farther back in his memories than when he had met Roxas. Now she did, and gasped. She snatched up her sketchbook, completing the vague figure; blue hair, a scar, and a hand grasping Axel's. She turned to Riku, looking worried.

"We need to help him. I'm going to go get the first aid kit."

Namine practically leapt up from her seat, hurrying out of the room.

Isa, huh? Riku had briefly seen someone that Sora had called Isa back in Traverse Town. Not that he had stuck around long, being manipulated by Maleficent as he was. But any friend of Sora's was a friend of his.

Riku turned to Axel. "I'll get one of my spare coats for this Isa of yours. If you dragged him through the Darkness, he's going to need it." He turned on his heel and hurried to his room to fetch one. Since his room wasn't that far, it wasn't long until he had returned, the coat draped over one arm. For once, he was grateful that his little stint with fighting Roxas had left him like this. None of the old coats DiZ had gotten him would have fit Isa. Namine reached the room at about the same time, clutching a large box under one arm. She frowned deeply, looking to Riku.

"Let's hurry. I have a terrible feeling about this."

"Right, I left him in uh, Halloween Town. Couldn't risk dragging him into another portal, uh, let's get a move on." With that, Axel summoned a portal, gesturing for the others to go first. But the scene that greeted him as he emerged from the portal was not at all what he'd expected.

Isa was pressed against the stone wall, barely holding himself upright through a combination of leaning against the wall and against his claymore. He was hemmed in by a handful of Wight Knights; he had kept them at bay by swinging his claymore wildly whenever one approached, but he didn't think he could keep that up much longer. He looked up when the dark portal opened. Isa heaved a sigh of relief when he saw a blur of red atop black come through. He slid down the wall to slump at the base, leaving a long red streak behind him. Lea could handle the rest; he could stop fighting now.

Lea was shouting...something. Everything was too muffled, Isa couldn't tell what he was saying. Well, whatever it was, it could probably keep until he woke up. Isa just wanted to sleep.

Isa let go, slipping gratefully into unconsciousness.

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"Damn it! I can't leave for five minutes-" Axel summoned his chakrams immediately after stepping out of the portal, making quick work of the Heartless. He checked his surroundings quickly, making sure no more were lurking around. His eyes landed on Isa. Blood was everywhere, did...did they make it in time?

The moment the Heartless were clear, Namine was past Axel and dropping to her knees before Isa. He was so pale, worryingly so. She placed a hand to his neck; there, a pulse. It was thready, but there. Namine forced a hi-potion down the man's throat, and Isa's color instantly improved.

What had he done...? Axel slumped to his knees and... just watched. This was all his fault.

"Why didn't he just let me go back, hrng. Look what I've caused," Axel was trying to catch his breath. For a moment Namine glanced in his direction, but he couldn't look at her. The gravity of the previous events were starting to hit him. This had all started as a simple mission, and Axel had to go and make it so... complicated.

Isa, was this really worth having an old friend back? Things weren't going to get any easier from here on out. And Axel could feel nothing but guilt. There it was, toying with him again. He wasn't supposed to feel this way, he wasn't supposed to feel anything at all. Why was he still here? The Organization clearly had new plans for him, and it only spelled disaster for Isa. There was no way he could keep doing this, he wasn't strong enough.

But these goddamn emotions.

Axel picked himself up, staggering over to Isa. Namine was bandaging the wound on Isa's back, so he crouched over and started bandaging his arms. It was horrible, he hated every moment of it. Knowing this man was on the brink of death because of his own selfishness.

Axel wondered, for a moment, if Isa realized how unfair this was. If he had any regrets. Because any sane individual would have turned their back by now.

Namine poured another hi-potion down Isa's throat, but a bit of this one went down the wrong pipe. His eyes shot open as he hacked the extra liquid up. Suddenly he was wide awake. This girl in front of him...Kairi? No, he'd only met Kairi briefly but he knew Kairi wasn't blonde.

Someone's hands were on his arm. Isa glanced up to see Lea beside him.

Lea looked...so distressed. He thought Lea couldn't feel...? Well, another piece of evidence against that. Either way, he didn't like seeing that look on the redhead's face. Isa smirked a bit at him, as though he were totally fine.

"...cut it a little close there, hmm, Lea...?"

"That's one hell of an understatement, Isa," Axel shot back, his voice a bit shaky now. "You nearly died back there, that's kind of a big deal. Dunno if you, uh, realized that."

The Nobody finished bandaging and stepped back, trying to get a grip- and failing.

"I don't know why they were after you and not me, but I can't stand this. I can't just sit back when I'm not strong enough to stop them and you- Look what they did to you. I can handle the consequences for my own actions but now they're dragging you in too," he grit his teeth, seething with something like anger at his own stupid actions.

"This can't be worth it, Isa. So close to death just because I was feeling a little selfish today," he slammed a fist into the wall behind him and collapsed, sliding down the wall and onto the ground next to Isa.

"You had to watch me die, what makes you think I want to do the same?"

Isa frowned as Lea talked. He was...worried about him? There was no way this man didn't have any feelings at all. No way. But to think he wasn't worth it? "...hmph. More of a big deal now...than it would have been two days ago. Clearly I can't leave you on your own..."

Isa reached a hand out to lay over Lea's, gripping the redhead's hand gently. "...Don't be so full of yourself. I can handle the consequences for my actions, too...I chose to get involved. Because you _are_ worth it." He turned his head to glance sidelong at the redhead, still leaning his head back against the wall. "...besides, if they were after me this time..." Isa paused to catch his breath, "...they'll still be after me whether you're there or not. Face it. You're stuck with me."

"Well I guess I can't argue with that, Isa." Not that Axel was doing much to stop the Organization.

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Kingdom Hearts, there was so much blood. And the area around them practically stank of darkness. Riku crouched down next to Isa, his hood lowered so that he could see his wounds more easily. The coat he had brought lay next to him on the ground. Isa was so pale, even after the hi-potions. And he had lost so much blood that he probably shouldn't even be alive.

Though judging from all the darkness around them, Riku had a good idea as to _why _he wasn't dead yet. Even so, they had to get him back to the mansion, and they had to do so soon. And the two of them were just talking, as if there was nothing wrong!

Riku looked over at Axel with a frown. "Axel, we can stay for a little while longer. But only for a few minutes at most to let him rest. He's still bleeding and very badly injured." He reached down and picked up the coat again. "We absolutely _have_ to get him back to the mansion. If Namine and I try to do anything to help him here, we're more likely to kill him than save him." Riku looked from one to the other, then stood up and shook out the coat. "After that, we can figure out why the Organization is apparently after Isa."

Axel pushed himself off the ground, meeting eye to golden eye with Riku. "We may as well go now, I clearly don't know what I'm doing," he took the coat from the silver-haired man, leaning over to Isa. He met his eyes briefly, opening the coat and staring for a moment, trying to figure out how to get the coat on him without hurting him.

Isa scowled at the coat. "...you cannot seriously expect me to wear that...thing." Isa shuddered a bit at the thought.

"Yeah well, you can't expect me to just sit here and watch you die either. It's not a fashion statement ya know, this will protect you from the darkness. So yer gonna have to deal," Axel threw the coat over his shoulder, and leaned over to Isa. He wasn't sure what it meant, but the Nobody couldn't exactly deny the _insane amount of worry _he felt in that moment.

It would just take some work to express that.

"Isa..."

He grabbed ahold of the injured man, helping him up slowly so he wouldn't put him in too much more pain. He held out the coat again, forcing Isa into it as... gently as he could. He might be injured, but he was as stubborn as ever. Isa grunted and gritted his teeth as Axel helped him into the coat, but kept his discomfort mostly to himself. It probably would have gone better if his arms didn't feel like lead. Axel turned to Riku and Namine, and with a snap of his fingers darkness was swirling out of the ground.

Isa really just wanted to slee- oh, they were going through one of those portals. Oh sh-

Isa shut his eyes in anticipation of the awful sensations he'd experienced on his first trip through the darkness, but they never came. It was cold, yes, and his scar tingled faintly, but nothing like his first trip through. Still, he kept his eyes shut until warmth washed back over him. He opened them and immediately had to shut them again, blinking against the blinding white of the room they were in.

"...where are we, exactly?" And was there somewhere he could just pass out for a few hours?

Namine frowned worriedly. She hoped Isa would be alright; he seemed so...

"Riku, can you please get that?" Namine gestured to the Claymore on the ground, before following Axel through the portal. There was no way anyone other than Riku could carry it at the moment, so she would leave it to him. The Claymore was decidedly heavier than it looked, but not so much that Riku was unable to lift it. It was just a little difficult and awkward to carry through the portal.

On the other side, Namine moved past Axel and towards the door.

"This way, please. There's a spare room..." Namine led the way down the hall to a dilapidated door. She shoved it open, gesturing into the room.

"I'm sorry it's a little bit of a disaster, but the bed is at least intact."

"Uh this is, I guess you could say Namine's home," Axel finally replied. "Uh..." he stepped over a broken piece of railing from the stairs, making sure Isa wouldn't trip either. Axel led the man into the spare room, gesturing to the bed with a bit of a disgruntled look. Isa never listened, and Axel was getting a little fed up with how stubborn he was acting. He carelessly released the blue-haired man, not realizing how incapable Isa was of standing up at that moment. Riku had to drop the claymore he was holding so that he could dart forward and grab Isa, keeping him from collapsing to the floor. The guy was in bad enough shape as it was. Smacking into the floor really wasn't going to do him any favors.

"Hngh!" Isa grunted as he was abruptly dropped and, just as abruptly, jerked back upright. Ow ow ow. Wow, was his head ever swimming. Isa glared at Axel.

"...what, exactly...was that for?" He was an idiot, but Isa didn't think he was THAT thick. But evidently he hadn't even noticed Isa's predicament.

"Should I get anything? Potions? Bandages? Cuz I know what I could use right now," Axel gestured to a chair in the corner, immediately flopping on the cushion only to be greeted by a cobweb and a plume of dust. He immediately hopped off the couch, rolling onto the ground with a loud thud. The floor was fine too. He was just hoping this long day would be over soon; he wanted to sleep just as much as Isa probably did.

Isa opened his mouth to chide the redhead, but-...oh, talking was a bad plan. He should consider stopping that. He flopped back as soon as Riku set him on the bed. Honestly, he should be madder about just being dropped like that, but he was just too damn tired to care. Fuck it. He was taking a nap.

"...whatever...wake me up if something important happens..." he muttered before dropping off.

Namine sighed. Hopefully a little rest would do Isa some good; he looked awful. Namine turned to Axel, kneeling down near him.

"...he's going to need stitches, but I think we should let him rest a little while before we try that. In the meantime, can you tell me exactly what's going on? I can't see into his heart as well as would be useful..." She paused, considering her words.

"...can you think of any reason why the Organization would want to kill your friend? I don't think their target was you from the very start." No, the target had definitely been Isa. But what could he have done to put himself in the Organization's sights? She didn't think he'd even been an important player, until he'd met Axel. What was going on...?

Axel thought about her question for a moment; where did he even begin? He sat up, leaning back on his arms as he began his rant.

"Xemnas and the rest of the Organization have been keeping watch on Sora, we ran into him in Hollow Bastion yesterday. I stayed behind," he paused; now probably wasn't the best time to reveal his intentions in provoking Sora. Not that they weren't obvious but... well, "but this one came to Sora's rescue. Apparently they're buddies, well... me and Isa here had some catching up to do. I knew I shouldn't have stayed but...I'm not sure why, but Lea really wanted me to stay."

That actually made a lot more sense in his head than in words, but Namine seemed to understand anyway.

"Isa and I knew the apprentices, before I um, well, when I was _someone_. Braig and Dilan, they remember when we were little troublemakers- Not that much has changed, heh. They picked up on it when we fought, and well, Xigbar has at least put two and two together that I'm not coming back to the Organization. But Isa ruined him the first fight, this guy's a little- Well, uh, it's pretty scary when he fights. He always had a bad temper but... but then they double teamed us later and this happened... So uh, logically they should be after me? But for whatever reason they acted like I didn't even exist- Well... you know what I mean."

He looked up at the bed, Isa was fast asleep now. A look of dread fell over his face, and he didn't care to try and hide it now.

"It just doesn't make sense, what am I missing here? Namine, I don't know if I'm strong enough to fight this battle I dragged him into. And Roxas... I... I might not get Roxas back now."

Fuck. What was happening, he was shaking.

Poor Axel was so confused...it was obvious to Namine that he didn't understand his own feelings. The girl laid a comforting hand over Axel's.

"I don't think he minds being pulled into it as long as he knows you're alright. And Roxas..." Roxas was...everything about what had happened with Roxas was awful. She felt terrible about what she had done to him, as much as she was capable of it. And she still was unsure how she felt about going back to Kairi. About who they both...no, who all three of them were, as Nobodies or as people. She decided to set that aside.

"...Axel. I don't think the Organization cares what happens to you." She took a deep breath. Namine knew how Axel was; she'd have to be as blatant as possible. "...I think they're trying to eliminate Isa. If he could beat their Number 2, _and_ they know he's friends with Sora, they're probably afraid of him. He's a threat, and...I think they went to Hollow Bastion to kill _him_. Not to retrieve you. It's out of your hands now; they'll keep after him no matter what."

...No.

No no no.

Axel clenched his fist underneath Namine's hand. His eyes fixed on the ground, the bed post, the bookshelf, the chains on his coat. The room was spinning, and all Axel could see was Isa's face. Bruised and bloody. Those... those bastards. This wasn't Axel's fight? N-no, Isa was not going at this alone. This was all Axel's fault.

Why did he have to stay, if it was even just because...  
>he felt a little...<br>he felt...

_How selfish of me._

"He can't- Damnit, no. NO. I'm- there has to be something I can do. He's not dying, not because of me. Not because I convinced myself I was, that I, felt... something. That's not happening, hrnnnggg," Axel stood up, shivering with... anger?

"I'll take them down one by one if I have to. I'm not losing him, I already lost Roxas. I can't handle this again. Namine, what do I do? I can't, I can't..."

_How fucking selfish, to think he had a heart._

Namine stayed kneeling on the ground, her eyes cast down.

"...but you DID feel something...didn't you...?" Namine's voice was quiet. "...you feel something right now. Don't you?" That fear, and sadness...they were real. Because of Roxas and-...

...Felt something. It seemed weird, uncomfortable. Those words being spoken.

Axel looked down; he knew Namine didn't have a permanent solution. It was unfair of him to ask that but... all of this was unfair.

He placed a hand over his chest, and slumped back down, ignoring the spiderweb that he disturbed yet again.

"I'll do anything I can, just give me the word."

"...we can hide him here until he's better. He's Sora's friend; we can't just let something happen to him either." She said that, but really, Namine just wanted to be able to _help _someone for once. She was tired of hurting people. For once, she wanted to do something that wouldn't hurt anyone. And Isa really was an innocent who'd been dragged into all of this...just like Roxas. Just like-

Namine wanted to do whatever she could to help him.

"We'll think of something. But for right now he needs medical attention. The Darkness won't keep him going forever. I'll need your help getting him stitched up, before he wakes up."

At least Isa had had the Darkness in his pocket to keep him alive. Otherwise this would have been a very different conversation.

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"Rrrgh..."

Hours later, Isa groaned, starting to wake up. It took him a moment to orient himself; he felt like he'd been run over by a gummi ship. Trying to sit up pulled his back painfully, and he winced - that's right, the fight. He opened his eyes, sitting up slowly and carefully. It felt like his back had been stitched up - he was familiar with the sensation of stitches. That was probab- definitely going to scar, but what did it matter? Isa glanced around the room he was in; it was the same one he remembered being carried into earlier. Someone had draped the coat he'd worn to pass through the Darkness over the arm of a nearby chair. But where was everyone?

Isa pulled the blanket back, cautiously putting both feet on the ground. He shoved himself up, wobbling a bit. After taking a moment to balance, he started shuffling carefully towards the door. He intended to find Lea, and he thought the white room they'd arrived in was as good a place as any to start.

Isa made his way down the hall slowly, clinging to the railing to support himself. He leaned heavily on the doorknob as he entered the white room, breathing a sigh of relief to see Lea there at the table with the blonde girl from earlier.

"...here you are. I was wondering where you'd gone-"

And it took Axel all of two seconds to jump to the man's side, wrapping an arm around him with a look of fury.

"What the hell are you doing? Are you insane, get back in bed!" He tugged on Isa, attempting to drag him back to his bed.

Of course. Oooooof course. Isa, stubborn as usual. Axel was going to lose his temper again if he even _tried _to argue himself out of this.

Isa just blinked. Huh?

"...you can't expect me to wake up alone in a strange place and just sit quietly?" For all he knew, Lea could have vanished or run off or been attacked, or any number of things. For that matter, he didn't even know where they _were_. "...I was worried about you, idiot. Of course I would come look for you."

And Axel was right back to fuming. That didn't take long.

"Yes I CAN expect that because LOOK at you. You're worried about ME?" Axel turned back to Namine, giving her a look that said 'I'll handle this mess', and proceeded to drag Isa by the arm back to the room from where he came. Isa didn't seem to want to go so easily, but Axel was headed in that direction, so Isa was too.

Isa protested the whole way down the hall. Was he really this weak right now, that _Lea_ could overpower him? Maybe the redhead had a point.

Axel swung the door open, nearly shoving Isa back into bed. Isa let out an "oof" as he hit the bed. Guess that defeated the purpose, but the Nobody was too angry to care. Axel paced the room, occasionally darting his gaze to the injured man, but his eyes were not able to convey precisely how angry the Nobody felt. Yes. Anger.

"You. Are. AN IDIOT." he lurched over Isa, planting his hands at either side of the man. This was a side of Lea that Isa had never seen, and he was too startled to say anything, just staring slack-jawed back at the Nobody. Green eyes met blue, and for a moment Axel lost his words. A quick glance at Isa's injured condition set him back on his rant though.

"You could have died, Isa. Do you think I want that? ANSWER ME. Do you think I want to lose you? Think about how it felt to lose me. DO YOU THINK I WANT THAT?" Axel's gaze dropped, was Isa really not getting this? Was this the same man he used to know?

"You aren't taking this seriously. You have no idea how scared I- Have you once thought how I felt-" finishing either of those sentences felt like a lie. Something forced him into a kiss though. Something to the flavor of 'Listen to me you idiot, I care about you'.

Which had a lot of truth to it.

He was afraid of pulling away now, because what was about to spill out of his mouth was, well, not pleasant, to say the least. Not that Axel hadn't already shared some scathing words with Isa. He broke off the kiss, avoiding eye contact, and slumping over on the bed next to the blue haired man. He leaned into his hands, speaking at the floor.

"Isa, I think the Organization...I don't think they're giving up until you're dead. And I'm not sure I'm- ...I don't think I'm strong enough. I couldn't even stop Roxas. I don't think you realize the gravity of this. I am responsible for dragging you into this, we need to cooperate. And it's a little, oh, I don't know, DIFFICULT..." he paused to calm himself, he didn't want to get too riled up. This was... strange. He wondered if Isa could tell that something was stirring where his heart should be.

"It's a little difficult. To deal with this all of a sudden. I've had a lot of things on my mind and I, with you, and..."

What was there to lose?

"I could not handle the thought of losing someone I care about. I've already been through this, I just... This doesn't make much sense, does it?"

He just stared off into the distance. There, it was out in the open.

Isa propped himself up on his elbows, frowning. Lea...

"...it's only natural not to want to lose people you care about. It makes perfect sense."

Well. It wasn't a surprise that the Organization wanted him eliminated. Obviously that was a problem. But he needed them off his back.

"...if this Organization won't rest until they've killed me...why not just let them believe they've succeeded?" Isa quirked an eyebrow at the redhead. "It will give us an advantage if we're going to destroy them."

"...huh? Wait you mean, so you've already got a plan? Let's hear it then!" Axel breathed a sigh of relief. He honestly wasn't sure what he was going to do. Leave it to Isa, heh.

"You're still as good an actor as you were when we were children, correct?" Isa frowned a bit. "It might be a little dicey for you for a bit, but I think you can handle it. We need those research notes..." The cogs were turning in his head. In addition to the notes, he needed time to decode them...and he also needed to ensure no one went after his littles to draw him out.

"...I'll need you to go get them for me. Try to avoid my family. That silver-haired man should go with you; he seems strong enough to protect you." Isa paused to catch his breath. "...The Organization should be watching; they're likely to confront you. When that happens, you are to lie like a rug. Tell them I am dead as a doornail; that is your story and you are to stick to it. And if things get dangerous, I want you to run away."

Isa looked up at Lea then. "Do you have that memorized? I think even you can handle that much."

Axel just grinned, "Yeah, got it memorized all right. Y'know, I'm pretty good at running away," he paused for a moment, "Clearly I'm not good at dragging others away with me though..."

He waited a moment before he laughed awkwardly. "Just, let's wait until I'm not a zombie either. I don't know if you've _noticed_ but, it's been a long day, and I need some rest too," Axel slumped over, but it was such a relief. Now if only Isa could always be this rational. At least this plan didn't involve endangering the... the lunatic.

"Of course I wouldn't send you now. You had best be in top form...besides, you'll need to go at night if you're going to steal those notes without being caught."

Isa rolled onto his side, both to face Lea and to get pressure off his back.

"...you realize you are really going to need to sell this to this Organization of yours. If they suspect you are lying, they're likely to follow you back here and endanger your friends. Or they're likely to hurt Squall and the other children to draw me out."

Isa frowned then. It was unfortunate, but...he needed the littles to be safe. Nothing for it. "...if you ARE caught, you're to give my family the same story. It's for their own protection...and ours. They can't slip if they don't know."

Whoa. Was this...really Isa?

"Whatever you want me to say. That's just a bit, well I don't know. Yer ruthless man, you've, eh-" -changed. For sure.

"I'll do my best," he spat out, reluctantly. He had to admit it was the only logical plan but, something felt off. About Isa at least- but his thoughts were interrupted by some footsteps at the door.

The door swung open slowly, DiZ's tall frame filling the entrance, blood red cloak pooling over the stark floor. As he saw the two figures before him, his arm tensed and he slammed the door open the rest of the way, causing a loud snap. Isa leapt up instinctively at the sound, then sank back down to sit on the edge of the bed, hissing in pain. That had been a bad plan, although it had been an automatic reaction so he had really had no control over it.

DiZ's amber eyes were wide, fury boiling inside him. The only thing that registered with him was the sight of the Organization XIII coats.

"What are you... you utter pieces of _trash_ doing in my mansion?" He snarled and turned with a swirl of red fabric, rushing to the White Room and smashing the door open in anger.

"Namine!" he boomed, slamming his hand down on the table, crushing a rogue crayon. "How DARE you bring these cretins into _my_ home, allow them to be in _my_ presence!" Namine gasped, flinching away from DiZ's anger. She clutched her hands to her chest, cowering back. She shouldn't have been surprised that DiZ would come back to the mansion, but she had hoped...the timing was terrible. But she wasn't sorry for helping the pair.

"...they're running from the Organization. They needed help, and-" Namine squeaked as DiZ snapped at her, cutting her off.

Riku had been lurking outside Isa's room when DiZ came storming over, slammed the door open, then stormed off screeching towards the White Room. Which wasn't all that unusual whenever the Organization had done something that annoyed him. But this time he was hollering at Namine.

He absolute would not stand for this.

Hurrying past the open door, it didn't take Riku long to reach the White Room. And as soon as he was there, he stepped between DiZ and Namine. "DiZ. Don't you shout at her." He snapped coldly. There was a lot of things he would put up with. Anyone raising their voice at Namine was not one of those things.

"Only one of the two is a Nobody, as you might have noticed if you had slowed down and hadn't been so hasty to accuse Namine." After the initial coldness, Riku fought to keep his voice level. "Axel is on the run. The other, Isa, was recently attack by the Organization and has narrowly escaped death. While he _is_ tainted with darkness," Riku raised an eyebrow. "He is _not _a Nobody."

He was, however, a friend of Sora's. Which generally meant he could be trusted, and he _would_ be helped. Even if it meant putting up with a Nobody and DiZ's constant bitching for a few days.

DiZ grit his teeth before straightening up and pointing off in the direction of the Nobody and whoever that was.

"Like any of that makes a difference to me!" he spat. "There is a Nobody here, I don't care who is running after them. I want them out of here!" He narrowed his eyes. "Because, so help me, if you don't, and seeing how well you followed orders before," his gaze fell briefly to Namine's quivering form, then back to Riku, "then I will do something about them."

Riku tensed for as long as DiZ's gaze was on Namine. "Absolutely not. The Organization attacked Isa because they consider him a threat and want him dead, DiZ. We want someone like that on our side." No, want wasn't the right word. _Need_ was closer to the truth.

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The sound of yelling from down the hall had Isa wobbling back up to his feet. He didn't know who this person was who'd just burst through the door and he didn't care; his words made him seem like an enemy, and Isa couldn't just let a little girl like the one who had helped him be bullied or even attacked by such a person. He looked back at Lea, scowling.

"Come on. It sounds like your friend is in trouble."

The screeching down the hall didn't seem promising, and as much as Axel didn't feel like getting bitched out he'd better go check on Namine.

He turned to Isa before he waved his hand dismissively and headed to the doorway. "I'll handle it, you stay put. And I mean it. You need rest, I don't need you ending up in more pain because of me," he sighed, finally starting out the doorway. "Besides, you heard him. _Nobodies_. See what I gotta put up with?"

Isa stumbled out of the room after the redhead, leaning on the railing as he went and scowling.

"For fuck's sake, Lea. Because of you? Do you honestly think I don't have my own reasons for fighting?"

And of course, all of two seconds for Isa to throw everything Axel had just said out the window.

"You idiot, what the hell did I just say?" he went to grab Isa, but the man wasn't moving this time. Axel turned to the white room down the hallway, hesitating for a moment before finding the words.

"Isn't this getting a little ridiculous, Isa? You've changed. The Isa I used to know was never this reckless, and now look at you. Your own reasons? That I'd love to hear. Because last I checked I was the one screwed over by the Organization, they're my fucking battle and I thought we went over this already, yeah? Who's the one here without a heart. That's what I thought. So just leave all the work to me from now on."

_What_ the _fuck_ did Lea just say to him?

Oh no. Isa did _not_ think so. He was _not_ getting away with that, and he was _certainly _not walking away from him. Axel turned to go help Namine and Isa's hand snapped out to grab the redhead's arm, his anger making him completely forget he was even injured.

"Leave the work to _you?_ If I did that nothing would get accomplished. You think _you're_ the _only one_ they've hurt? That losing your heart was so terrible? Well maybe it was," Isa snarled, "but they took _everything _from me."

Isa took a deep breath, reigning in his fury. He spoke through clenched teeth, barely controlling himself. "Because of those..._apprentices..._I had to watch my best friend die, right in front of me. We were _children_, Lea, and they made me see that. They disfigured me for life. They gave me _brain damage,_ when their filthy experiments smashed my head into the pavement." Isa forced Axel's hand to touch under his hair, to feel the deep dent on the side of his head where his skull had been cracked.

"They took my control, my _sanity_. They killed my parents, destroyed my entire world. And then I find out they've been keeping my most precious person hostage for _ten years, brainwashing_ him, and you want me to just _stand back_ and _let them get away with it?_

Isa was breathing heavily by now; both out of fury and because going on for so long was taking a lot out of him.

"My heart was _already yours_, idiot. The _only thing_ they left me with was my life. That's _mine_ to keep or give however I want to. You said you wanted to suffer like me, Lea?" Isa's eyes narrowed, and his voice dropped to a hiss. "Well. You'll need to get in line. Because I am going to visit it all on those _monsters _first. So you can help me, or you can stay out of the way while I do it myself."

Axel lowered his eyes. He wasn't nervous, filled with unease. He was calm.

Oh. So Isa didn't care if he lived or died, join the club. Roxas called him a liar, so Axel started telling the truth with Isa. It was silly to think there was any redemption for Nobodies. Isa clearly didn't deserve it. Not that it mattered.

_'See, I knew it was stupid. You don't have a heart, you just have memories to deceive you. This isn't Isa, this is someone else. Isa is gone.'_

The mission was to save Roxas, and now here Axel was- totally losing sight of his goal for some pipe dream. What did he hope to accomplish? Isa was more than willing to put his life on the line... but then what would happen to Axel after he died? He would be alone. Again.

...But Roxas could still be saved. He just- he just had to kill Sora. Easier job than keeping watch on a suicidal madman, that was for sure.

So Axel raised his eyes, meeting blue once more. An arm reached out, grabbing Isa lightly on the shoulder. Yeah, he didn't need much more assurance.

"Fine. Go get yourself killed, see if I care. I can't, no heart, remember?" he pointed a finger to his chest, before he flicked his hand, summoning a dark corridor.

"You're the one who needs to get in line. Dying off is exactly what they want. But hey, if you finish off the Organization on your own then it's less trouble when I go to get Roxas back. And one last thing. The name is _Axel_.

"No use getting that memorized, huh," he muttered as he walked into the darkness.


	7. Fallout

A/N: And we're back, with another bi-weekly installment. How's Isa going to respond to last chapter? Enjoy!

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Isa's chest heaved as he sucked in deep, gasping breaths. That idiot. That IDIOT. His hands clenched into fists. He couldn't contain his anger. The blue-haired man let out a frustrated snarl, one fist slamming through the rotted banister beside him, smashing it to splinters.

He leaned forward, mastering himself. What was he going to do? Lea- idiot. How was he going to go after him?

Isa's head snapped up, towards the white room at the end of the hall. He staggered towards the door, throwing it open as he reached it. Hunched, gasping, and furious, he looked more beast than man. He ignored the red-clad man, focusing immediately on the one in the black coat. Isa leaned on the chair closest to the door, pointing at the silver-haired man.

"You. You aren't a Nobody, are you." he growled. "But you can make those portals. Tell me how. Right now."

At that moment, Riku was torn between guarding Namine from DiZ, and getting Isa's sorry, beat-up ass back to bed before he found a way to make his wounds even worse. Riku took a deep breath to calm himself, since Isa _had _just interrupted their fight. He shouldn't be up and out of bed. He should be resting and letting his injuries heal, not wandering around and making demands.

"No, I'm not a Nobody. And I'm _not_ going to show you how to create portals." Riku gave Isa a level look, of the 'are you kidding me?' sort. "Isa, you just got mauled by the Organization, then dragged through darkness and assaulted by some fairly dangerous Heartless. You are in no condition to be dealing with yet _more_ darkness until you're healed. You shouldn't even be out of _bed_ right now."

Kingdom Hearts, it was like this guy had a reckless disregard for his own safety and didn't care if he ended up getting himself kille-

... Oh. Well. That would be something to look out for while he was recovering here. And yet another reason to not teach him how to handle the darkness right now. He'd probably run off the moment he got a stable portal up.

Riku sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose with one hand. First DiZ yelling at Namine, now this. Today was full of all sorts of unpleasantness for him. "Dare I ask why the sudden demand?"

"Lea's gone." Isa snapped. "I need to go after him, the idiot, he could get himself killed-"

Isa found his knees going weak, and he had to sink into the chair he was leaning on. Everything was going wrong. Everything- he didn't understand how all this had happened. Everything was so fucked. His breathing had become completely erratic. Isa pressed a hand to his face, trying to control himself.

"...I don't know what to do." Isa hissed under his breath. "I don't-"

"I know what you can do," DiZ interrupted snappishly, straightening himself up. "You can leave. I don't care where as long as it is out of my presence." He was almost tempted to make a portal just to get rid of this man, if it was true that he couldn't create them on his own. His attention was on Isa now, ignoring Namine and Riku, and it was only now that he was noticing the sharp resemblance this man had to someone in his memories, from long ago...

DiZ's lips pulled back into a thin line, narrowing his single visible eye at the blunette.

"...you look very familiar. Isa, was it?" He folded his arms behind him slowly, trying to think of where he had seen this man. Where... had he seen...

His eye widened a little as a past memory washed over him, realizing, finally...

"You were a resident of Radiant Garden. You ran along with the redheaded boy...Yes, I remember... You were rescued by the guards and brought into the castle to heal after your little..." He brought a hand up to tap his own forehead lightly. "...accident. I supposed you had been consumed by darkness like so many others from that world. I'm surprised you survived, even moreso that the Organization didn't _snatch_ you up like your friend."

Isa's head snapped up and he slowly rose from his seat, glaring daggers at DiZ. "Who the _fuck_ are you, speaking to me like-"

"The Organization didn't want to kill you because you were a threat." Riku cut across Isa as he voiced the thought aloud, less speaking and more _breathing_ the words. Of _course_. He should have seen it sooner. "They were trying to turn you into a Nobody because you're strong enough to be of use to them."

But that didn't matter now. DiZ had his attention on Isa now, not Namine, so Riku moved to the injured man's side. "He is absolutely not leaving, DiZ." Riku snapped, his annoyance with the man returning a bit. "Sending him away now would be a death sentence." He paused a moment to calm down before he started speaking again.

"You _have_ to rest, Isa. I don't know all the details on what's been going on, but it's clear that you need some time to gather your thoughts, recuperate, and plan your next move. Despite what _some_ say," he glared over his shoulder at DiZ, "it'd be for the best if you stay here. The Organization doesn't know about this place." Unless, of course, Axel decided to rat them out. "And at some point, it would be a good idea to get all that Darkness under control."

Isa scowled at Riku's words. Turn him into a Nobody? Oh, he did not think so. He'd rather die than let the Heartless have him, no matter how convenient the Nobodies' abilities were. Then Isa realized what Riku had just said.

"...what Darkness?" Isa's scar wrinkled as he frowned. "What are you talking about?"

Riku gave him an odd look, imitating the other in that he frowned ever so slightly. "Isa, you practically _stink_ of Darkness. You're saturated with the stuff. I wouldn't be surprised if you'd been unconsciously using it to augment your strength- _yourself_- for, well..." He hesitated, checking the thick scent of Darkness again. "Years. It's probably why you weren't dead by the time Axel got us to you. Do you mean to tell me you didn't know?"

The look on his face made it obvious that, no, Isa HADN'T known. Had never guessed, never even suspected. How could that be possible?

"...what do you mean, 'by the time he got you there'?" He would have been fine. Sure, he'd been badly hurt, but Isa was sure he'd lost just as much blood at least once before. Hadn't he? He must have. It was a survivable amount, he was fine now, he could even get up and walk on his own. He'd always been able to recover quickly.

...Could he have...all that time...?

Isa reached up to touch his scar. The way it had _steamed_ when he'd gone through that portal...

"You looked like the living dead when we first got to you. You had lost so much blood that you should rightfully _be _dead." Riku explained slowly, not entirely sure what to say. Telling someone they'd been tainted by Darkness... that wasn't exactly something he'd had to do before. "The only way you could have survived was if you had been using Darkness to strengthen yourself. To keep yourself alive."

His frown deepened a bit when Isa reached up to touch his scar. Riku didn't know how he had gotten that, but... depending on how, it could hold a couple of answers to this. "How did you get that scar?"

Isa dropped his hand, scowling.

"I was attacked by Heartless, when I was 16."

That would explain why. An injury severe enough to scar that badly, around the concentrated Darkness of the Heartless... "If the injury was inflicted by a Heartless, who are essentially concentrated Darkness, and allowed to heal that way, that could easily explain it. The initial wound, and then later the scar, was probably infused with the Darkness around it." Which wouldn't do good things to Isa's mental state. Kingdom Hearts, Riku'd been fucked up in the head for a while by the Darkness, and that was only with Ansem at his strength deciding to take up residence in his heart. That much darkness in his head... nothing good could come of it.

As for Isa, he had not thought his day could _possibly_ get any worse, but evidently he'd been wrong. He'd be dead without the Darkness? Well, that was rankling. But at the same time...

...this man could use the Darkness. Deliberately. He could portal, and Isa suspected he could do a fair bit more than just that. If Isa had been using the Darkness subconsciously for all this time, he could think of no reason why he couldn't learn to use it deliberately as well. Clearly it wasn't going to just go away. Isa could harness it, use it to destroy that Organization and reclaim some semblance of normalcy. But...

Isa scowled, looking straight at the silver-haired man.

"...who are you, anyway?"

Riku froze. How could he reply to this? He wasn't... he wasn't _himself_ anymore. "It's not important who I am."

Oh the _look_ Isa gave him at that. If looks could kill. Clearly he wasn't going to be satisfied or, probably, let up asking until he got an actual answer. Fine then. Let him have a name. But it didn't have to be his true one.

"Ansem."

Isa scowled. "Bullshit. I know what Ansem the Wise looked like, and you are not-"

Wait. The Ansem from the notes. The researcher. The _researcher._ Isa's eyes widened, and before he knew it, he was diving at the silver-haired man in a fury.

Even in his weakened state, Isa was surprisingly strong. Riku hadn't been expecting that reaction, not even a little. The only thing he could think of that could elicit this kind of response was the name, and why would it do that? But he didn't have time to think about that because Isa was bloody _attacking _Riku and he'd have to defend himself-

But a gasp and a cry of "Riku!" from the blonde girl at the end of the table stopped Isa in his tracks.

"Riku? _Sora's _friend Riku?"

Riku froze, blood running cold, still poised to defend himself from the attack that didn't appear to be coming anymore. And all he could do was stare at Isa. He didn't want to answer that. He _couldn't_. He had used the Darkness and lost himself in it, ending up stuck looking like this. He wasn't Riku anymore.

After a long moment, Riku slowly straightened. For a second, he thought he might be able to answer. Either deny that he was indeed Riku, or admit. But he couldn't. Instead he just looked away, focusing on some random point on a wall so he didn't have to face Isa. Yet.

Isa backed off, but continued staring at the silver-haired man before him. The man's- Riku's- face betrayed him. The answer to Isa's question was obvious. This _was_ the person Sora had been looking for. Isa'd found him.

"You _are _Riku." Isa stated. But he was sure Riku wasn't much older than Sora; he certainly shouldn't be this old, this tall. It made no sense.

"What's happened to you?" Isa scowled. "Your appearance...is this why you've let Sora worry about you for this long? He's half afraid you may be dead."

This was what Isa could do to repay Sora. Even if everything had gone wrong, he still owed Sora; for returning his home world, and for letting him know the truth. He was glad he knew what had happened to Lea, even after everything. It was better to know and be in pain than to be ignorant.

Isa sat back down in his chair. He was so tired. All of this was too much. He didn't look at Riku as he spoke.

"You ought to let him know you're alive. He deserves that much."

Riku couldn't take it anymore; he lifted the hood back over his head to hide his face, turning physically away from Isa.

"I had to call on the power of my Darkness during a fight." Riku replied quietly, "I called on its full strength, used it... and lost myself to it. Permanently." It took all his willpower to keep his voice even and calm. "I can't face Sora. Not like this."

Besides. It... it was for the best if Sora thought he was dead. Then, at least, his last memory of him was a Riku freed from Ansem's grasp. Not one that had more or less fallen back into his hold after everything Sora had gone through to save him from it. "Better that he think I'm dead then he know what I've become."

"That's _idiocy_," Isa snapped. "Do you think Sora cares what you look like? Have you _met_ Sora?" There really _was_ a 16-year-old underneath that face, wasn't there? "He's worried sick about you. You cannot just leave him to suffer because you _look different."_

That was such a stupid, melodramatic reason. _Teenagers. _They all thought they knew what was best, but they were almost never right when they got into moods like this. Squall had been just the same at that age-

Isa suddenly missed his family. Had it really only been a day since he'd last seen them? It felt like weeks, at the same time that it felt like everything had happened at whirlwind speed. He realized he hadn't had any real chance to rest since he'd first seen Lea again. What sleep he'd gotten had been disturbed by nightmares, and he'd Berserked not once, but _twice_ in a 24-hour period. He had never done that before.

Isa slumped down in his chair, dropping his face into his hands. Only now, in a safe place without Lea right in front of him, was he able to really think. He was so exhausted; his control was absolutely shot to hell. He must have scared Lea badly, with everything he'd done and said. Normally he had a tight reign on his emotions, and he almost never ran his mouth. But when he was tired like this...

He thought about what Lea had said before he'd left. Isa must have phrased what he meant to say all wrong; he'd been trying to tell Lea he had no intention of letting the Organization kill him. They'd taken everything else he had before Radiant Garden fell; why would he let them take his life, too? But it seemed like Lea had misunderstood him.

"...he's not coming back, is he." Isa muttered aloud.

Right then, all he wanted was his family. They understood what he meant, without him having to say it. He wanted to go home; to hear Aerith's soothing voice as she patched him up, Squall standing by and pretending not to worry as Yuffie ranted about how he needed to to be more careful and Cid rolled his eyes at her antics. But he couldn't go home now, not without endangering them all. The Organization had taken that from him, too.

Riku reluctantly face Isa again, but he didn't pull down his hood. "I don't know if Axel will come back. But, at the risk of sounding like a broken record, you _have_ to get some rest." How many times had he said this, now? A lot. That was probably close enough. "Once you're suitably recovered, we can see about teaching you how to get your Darkness under control." He didn't know exactly how deep Isa's Darkness ran, but it didn't matter. You had to have total control over even the smallest amount, otherwise you ran the risk of it growing beyond your control and overwhelming your heart.

"...you're right." Isa answered, dragging his hands down his face and taking a deep breath. "...I do. I'm in no fit state to be of use to anyone." He recognized that now, now that he had a moment to think without Lea there to distract him. "...but you WILL teach me how to use this Darkness, once I'm recovered." Isa said it like an order, not like a question.

A different shade of white entered his field of vision, and Isa looked up to see the blonde girl, looking down pityingly at him. Isa frowned.

"...I don't think I got your name."

The girl frowned "...Namine. Pleased to finally meet you, Isa." Namine held out a hand, and Isa took it, letting the girl help him to his feet and escort him down the hall. She reminded him a bit of Aerith, in her mannerisms and way of speaking. Isa was struck with homesickness once again.

Namine guided Isa towards the bed and he sat down, staring at his hands. He was so tired, and it was all too much.

Namine stood by Isa, frowning and stroking his hair. He needed company and comfort to clear his head, so she would stay.

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Man, this was not what he'd planned at all. Oh well. No use getting bent out of shape over it.

Axel stepped out of the darkness, and into a rocky pathway in Hollow Bastion. There was still rubble on the ground from their battle earlier, so Axel knew he was way too close to Isa's 'family' for his own good. The sun was set to rise any moment now, jeeze, that really reminded the redhead of how little sleep he was running on. Granted the _sex _was worth it but...

Isa, what happened to you? Whatever, he had to focus on Roxas. Whatever it would take. He would sit at that clock tower again.

_Whatever it would take._

The Nobody paced along the empty streets, where would he even begin? He really didn't have much of a plan, but sleep should probably be a part of it. He was still on the run though, and had lost his only safe place for the time being

Well, sleep would have to wait. His thoughts were interrupted by a sudden disturbance, _Nobodies_. Axel turned to find himself surrounded, Snipers and Dragoons crawling from out of the alley. Well fuck. He summoned his chakrams and got to work, fending off the Nobodies as best he could. He was way too exhausted for this, dodging some attacks but being struck by a stray arrow here and there. Axel backed off and gained some distance, and charged at a sniper- but his attack missed? The Nobodies suddenly disappeared in a swirl of dark. Was he missing something? He spun around when he heard a familiar cackle, echoing through the streets.

His luck could **not** be this bad.

Two figures loomed over the edge of a building, looking down at the defeated Axel. Xigbar was laughing, nudging Xaldin lightly with his elbow and munching on a bag of chips. He hopped down from the building and landed gracefully on the ground below, turning to grin at Axel. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other and gestured to the redhead.

"See Xaldin? Leaving patrols around to do the dirty work..." He chuckled again and looked over at Axel, tilting his head a little with a smirk on his face.

"So, long time no see, Porcupine Head. Oh wait, or are you going by 'Lea' now?" He grinned, wrinkling his nose a little and eating a chip. He looked around a little, raising a brow. "Where's your boyfriend at, eh? Finally get tired of him and ditch? I don't blame you, hearts are pretty complicated."

Axel figured they'd ask, but, well- may as well stick with Isa's plan. It might make the Nobody look good, enough to spare himself from getting killed off _this time_. He looked Xigbar in the eye, slowly directing his gaze to the scene of their fight earlier.

"Oh yeah, hearts _are _pretty complicated. But that's not why I bailed," Axel decided to dismiss his chakrams, folding his arms across his chest as a scowl came over his face. "He's dead. Reckless lunatic did it to himself, though you two probably didn't help the case. I got a ton of information about Sora from him though..."

His scowl turned into a grin. A hopeful grin. As Axel was explaining, Xaldin slid off the rooftop and landed next to Xigbar with a light swirl of wind. Xigbar listened closely, staying his hand by the opening of his bag of chips as he kept his attention on Axel.

Then he took a chip out and ate it.

"Well fuck. Ain't that a shame. He's no use if he's dead, can't turn a corpse into a Nobody..." He shook his head. "Guess we should've gone a little lighter on him, though if he couldn't even handle _that_ maybe he didn't deserve to come back and join our ranks..."

Xaldin sighed at the news. "Well, that's an unfortunate turn of events. But at least he's out of our hair." Shit happens. It had been a win-win situation for them any way, so it really wasn't a major loss.

He glanced over at Xigbar, ignoring Axel, eyebrow raised. "Of course, we don't need this one anymore, do we? Failed to stop Roxas or bring him back, failed to keep Isa or turn him... he really isn't worth all the trouble he's been causing..." He let the sentence trail off, gesturing meaningfully with one hand as a couple of Dragoons appeared behind them.

Okay so they still wanted Axel dead. Seemed reasonable at this point. But- What was this? They wanted to _recruit_ Isa?

...Well, that certainly changed everything. Axel had something_ they _wanted.

"Whoa whoa, can't we talk for a second? I may have left out some important details. Isa, well, alright, he isn't dead. But but but, I'm sure you'll overlook this little mishap if I... bring him to you? I mean he's weak, and pretty much wants to die anyway." Axel grinned, this was easier than he thought. Isa could get what he wanted, a showdown to the death with the Organization. And he was working as one hell of a bargaining chip. Win-win situation.

"I just want to get Roxas back, that much you can bet on. And I'll get him back, but I can't do that dead, ya know. How about it?" he held out a hand in a truce, waiting for them to seal the deal. They couldn't possibly say no.

Xigbar kept a chip in his teeth, watching Axel closely. Oh, this was _good_. With Axel ready to sell out his best little buddy... Hell, maybe there was still hope for this guy.

He bit down on the chip and handed his bag off to Xaldin, rubbing the crumbs off his glove onto his pants before grabbing ahold of Axel's to give it a firm shake.

"Well, good to have you back then, Axel." He grinned. "Demyx'll be glad to have less work... Or maybe more, depending on what kind."

"Glad to be back," Axel just laughed at that, shaking Xigbar's hand. Way. Too. Easy.

"Well, I've got some rest to catch up on. Besides, Isa's little buddies hang around here. If they catch us I doubt they'll be very friendly after what uh, happened, y'know? Plus I gotta catch up with Dem. A whole two days, I bet _so _much has changed." Oh, sarcasm.

Well now, with his safety ensured, Axel had at least one less thing to worry about. Now to figure out how he was going to kill off Sora. He could only hope Isa would keep his end of the bargain and kill off enough of the Organization. Killing the keyblade master and running off with his Nobody? He doubted there was a bargaining chip for that one. So the fewer Nobodies running around, the better.

"I'll show you where Isa is in the afternoon. I'm sure he'll be as bad off as ever, that guy just cannot stand still." Axel opened a portal and breathed a sigh of relief. Oh this was way too easy. Way. Too. Easy.

Now to catch up on some sleep. Today was going to be an interesting day...

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In the shadows of a nearby building, a young man stood pressed against the wall, observing the Nobodies.

Leon had woken early that morning, but had been surprised not to find Isa awake before him. Worried, Leon had checked Isa's room and, finding the bed empty, he'd gone out to look for his "brother." The wreckage and the blood outside had put his heart in his throat, but there'd been no further sign of Isa _or_ Axel. That was, until Leon heard voices. Two in particular were familiar. Leon hung back in the shadows, his back to a wall as he shimmied forward to peer around a corner.

The young man held back a gasp. There was Axel, but where was Isa? And- the Nobody was conversing casually with the same man they'd fought the other afternoon. The one with the eyepatch. But-

Squall's eyes widened when he heard Axel's words.

No. No, no.

Isa...dead? _No._

And these...these _monsters_ were discussing it so _casually_. Out of their _hair?_ _No use if he's dead?_ And Axel. _Axel_. He'd been using Isa the whole time, hadn't he? Getting information about Sora, those two talking about turning his brother into a Nobody. Isa had loved him, and Axel had used Leon's brother and thrown him away. The young man had to bite into his lip to keep himself quiet, struggling to keep his breathing under control.

Leon looked up to see Axel leaving with the other two, all buddy-buddy. He'd missed the rest of the conversation, but that confirmed it. All of it..._all of it_ had been a trick, a _lie,_ just to get near their brother. They'd been so _stupid!_ Leon slammed his fist back into the wall behind him, letting out a snarl of grief and rage. He slid down the wall to slump at the bottom, holding his face in his hands.

His brother was gone. And those monsters were to blame.


	8. Vengeance

A/N: Chapter 8! I think it's time to check in with some other characters, don't you?

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Axel stepped into the familiar hallways leading up to the Grey Area. He knew he should rest but... News probably got around that he took off, so he felt the need to make his presence known.

Luxord was in his usual spot, deck of cards in hand. His opponent didn't seem very enthusiastic, his blonde mullet peeking over the edge of the couch. With Xigbar and Xaldin gone, the castle was... pretty empty.

Well, it beat babysitting Isa anyway.

The redhead snuck over, putting a finger to his lips when Luxord looked up from his hand of cards. The blonde simply glanced back to his hand, his poker face in full force.

Demyx was trying to keep his poker face on, squinting his eyes and puckering his lips and doing an all around terrible job at trying to keep a grin off his face, pulling a card from his hand to place down...but before he could revel in his triumph, he was met with a body flinging itself over the back of the couch and scaring the fuck out of him. He was sure, however, that his girlish screech had definitely sounded like a manly bellow, even if he had flung his cards into the air and flailed his arms in surprise. Axel just laughed, wrapping an arm around the startled blonde and grinning like a madman.

"Hey you lazy shit, miss me?"

Demyx stared for a moment, catching his breath.

"Axel, you dick, you almost gave me a heart attack," he wheezed, leaning against the back of the couch. He then realized the irony in that and sat away from the couch a little, looking at the redhead and raising a brow questioningly.

"Wait, I thought you went traitor on us? Dude, if the big guys catch you just chillin' in here you're gonna be Dusk'd in no time."

"Traitor? I'm _hurt_ that you'd think that, Dem." Axel laughed as he slapped the Nocturne on the shoulder. He turned to Luxord, who had just finished picking up his cards and was now staring at Axel for an explanation.

"I got a little caught up with an old friend, he gave me a ton of info on Sora. And apparently Xigbar and Xaldin are looking for some new recruits so... it all worked out in the end. Looks like you're gonna have to work harder to look as good as I do right now, slackers!"

Okay, okay, his luck had turned around for the better. Even Luxord should be jealous by now. Axel briefly wondered if Isa had any intention of chasing after him, but it faded away quickly. No use in feigning attachment. He didn't have a heart. Thinking he had one had nearly cost him his life.

Whatever. Sleep could wait, the redhead didn't feel so tired right now. He wanted to get his mind off things, and he knew just how to go about it.

Axel kicked back, nudging Demyx again, "So, since I know you must be reeling with excitement over here, I don't wanna disturb anything but uh-" Axel turned to see the Gambler picking up his things and dismissing himself from the room. The redhead just grinned, leaning over to the blonde and whispering, "but we should totally go uh, y'know-"

Judging from Demyx's reaction, he'd say it was a definite yes.

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It hadn't taken very long for Sora to check out just a couple of new worlds; Land the gummi ship, run around for a bit to get an idea of the lay of the land and any Heartless problems in the area, then maybe get a few things out of the way before checking out another world. And it was a good way to keep himself busy after that, uh, unfortunately awkward mishap with Isa and Axel. Sora had actually left not long after that happened, not really wanting to hang around with that awkward hovering over them.

Sora, Donald and Goofy had just spent quite a bit of time running around in the dreary Beast's Castle. They had even been lucky enough to briefly meet the Organization member that was actively messing with Beast's head. He was a nasty character. Sora would probably have to deal with him at some point. But Beast would be able to hold out for a while as he popped back over to Hollow Bastion to check up on things and chat with Merlin.

Travel worn and a little rough around the edges from a few scrapes that hadn't been bad enough to warrant a potion or Cure, Sora and Co. arrived on Hollow Bastion for a second time.

The courtyard was torn up, as if from another fight. Sora was a little worried by the sight; had they been attacked again after he left? He didn't see any blood, though, so if so hopefully no one had gotten hurt. He really shouldn't worry. They were all very capable fighters- or almost all of them. If they were attacked, they'd be able to defend themselves. _But_, he thought, _the Organization knows Axel's here. I couldn't care less about him, but everyone else could get hurt in the crossfire if they came to get him back._

Okay, now Sora was just jumping to conclusions. It was probably nothing. Maybe just a scuffle with a bit of a tougher Heartless or Nobody. No use in worrying.

As per usual, Sora didn't even knock as he approached the (newly repaired) front door. He simply let himself in. No one seemed to be in a particularly good mood. In fact, everyone was looking pretty sullen. Maybe he could cheer things up.

"Hey guys!" He greeted, grinning broadly. "Sorry for leaving all of a sudden like that. Some new worlds opened, and I had to go check them out." There. That was good enough of an explanation- and a true one, too! "Do any of you know where Isa is? I wanted to-"

Okay. So he was a bit of an airhead at times. More then a bit. In fact, he was told fairly often that people weren't entirely sure how he'd survived this long, being as oblivious as he was. But even _he_ noticed how the general mood of the room took a turn for the worse when he mentioned Isa. Cid, Leon, and Aerith looked away from Sora, each frowning deeply. Yuffie, though, stared at the keyblade master for a full minute before bursting into tears and fleeing. Aerith immediately rose to follow her.

"... What is it? What's wrong, you guys? Did something happen while I was gone?"

_Had something happened? _That was an understatement. Cid looked away sadly, getting up to do some chore or other. That left Leon with the task of telling the boy _what_ had happened.

Leon scowled, staring at the wall rather than at Sora.

"...Isa's dead." he stated, in a tone halfway between bitter and matter-of-fact, a slight quaver to his voice. "The Organization killed him."

...What?

Anything Sora had been going to say died in his throat. He stared at Leon, not quite believing what he had just heard. Sora was silent, and as it slowly sank in he felt kinda shaky, dizzy, and just a bit numb. Death... death wasn't something he had ever had to deal with. Ever. People... people didn't die. That just didn't _happen._

But now Leon was saying that Isa was...

No. No...no. No no _no_. There was no way Isa could be dead. He had just seen him! He had just been talking and fighting and hanging out with Isa just... just the other _day! _This had to be some sort of sick joke!

But Leon would never joke about something like this. None of them would. Especially not when Isa was involved. But...Isa...dead? How...how could this have...

... No. Forget how. _Who_. That was what he wanted... what he _needed _to know. He needed to know who killed Isa, to find them and make them pay.

Sora tried to speak, but his voice was barely a whisper. He cleared his throat and tried again. "Who...who did it? How...how..."

_"Axel."_ Leon hissed. "He may not have killed Isa himself, but he's the one responsible."

Leon crossed his arms, scowling deeply, still not facing Sora. His voice was level, empty - drained of emotion, so that he could talk about what he'd heard.

"I saw him talking to the one with the eyepatch. It sounded like eyepatch ganged up on Isa with another one...I heard him address him. Xaldin." Leon's scowl deepened. "Stocky-looking, with dreadlocks...anyway, it looks like they wanted to take Isa's heart and force him to join their Organization. So they sent Axel to gain his trust and lure him away. It sounded like this Xaldin wounded Isa badly...badly enough that instead of turning, he just died."

Leon's voice had taken on a strangled quality. "...Axel was using him the whole time." His fists clenched into the fabric of his coat, almost tearing it. "He didn't care one bit that Isa died. He went straight from delivering that news to his little friends to saying at least he'd wrung Isa for information about you first."

Leon gave a disgusted snort. "...we should never have let him near here. But Isa-...I guess he finally got what he wanted." he muttered bitterly.

Axel, that fucker. Sora had _known_ it was a bad idea to trust him. He had _said _that nothing good could come of this. Had they listened to him? Had_ Isa_ listened to him? No. And look where tha-

"_Xaldin._"

Oh, he knew who Xaldin was. He knew all too well. An image of him standing on that balcony, taunting Belle, the Beast, and himself popped unbidden into his head. Sora clenched his hands into fists so tightly it hurt. He knew a Xaldin. And, more important, he knew where to _find _him.

Send Axel, Isa's old friend, the man he loved and had thought was dead for _ten years_, to lull Isa into a false sense of security. To try and get him turned into a Nobody, only to end up with him...with him..._killed_. Absolutely not. The Organization wasn't getting away with this. Axel, Xaldin, and that man with the eyepatch especially.

A dull roar had taken up residence in his ears, and Sora was actually trembling by this point. From anger, or from sorrow. He didn't know which. Both wouldn't be impossible, considering the rage he was feeling and how wet his cheeks were. "...Thanks. I... I've got to go. There's someone I have to find." Sora took a shaky breath, then turned on his heels and strode briskly towards the door.

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After that, it wasn't long until Sora arrived at Beast's Castle. His point of arrival was, of course, the Parlor. Quiet, out of the way, and the perfect place to make sure he was ready for his death-match with Xaldin. And, hopefully, to get a grip on himself. While he had calmed down a bit since his initial reaction, he was still extremely upset...and more than a little shaken. Sora was really getting the feeling that if he really stopped to think about things or had more than a few seconds down time, he was going to lose it and fall apart.

Now was not the time for that. Now was the time for double checking his stores of potions and elixirs and buying more from the moogle if he needed to. For making sure he was using the most effective Keychain and had all his spells in order. Not for thinking about how Isa...How he...Okay, now he really was starting to lose his hold on things. That was bad.

A massive roar came from the entrance and tore Sora out of his momentary funk. He dashed over to the Parlor door just in time to see the Beast go tearing by. Any number of things could have set the Beast off, but it was probably a safe bet that this was somehow connected to Xaldin. His resolve came surging back at that thought. With that in mind and his sorrow ruthlessly shoved to the side to be dealt with later, Sora took off after the Beast.

Even if it wasn't Xaldin he was after, the Beast just might know where to find him.

Beast barreled through the entryway and out into the courtyard, slamming straight through the doors without slowing down. That Nobody was NOT getting away with stealing his rose. Absolutely not.

"XALDIN!" Beast bellowed. He vaguely registered the presence of the Keybearer behind him, but he had no concern for the teenager right now. He was furious, and had a Nobody to smash into paste.

"You called?"

A dark portal swirled into existence and out stepped Xaldin, the rose's case cradled in one arm. It was time for things to get a move on. He rather wanted to join in on raiding Isa's hideout, which meant that it was time to wrap things up here and get the Beast's Nobody already. As much fun as it had been to play with his mind, there would be other people to mess with. Other minds to bend and shatter for his personal amusement.

Well. Speak of the Keyblade. Sora had come to a stop next to the Beast and was glaring at Xaldin with a startling intensity. This was an unfortunate turn of events; he would have to deal with Sora before finishing up with Beast.

No matter. It was a minor setback, but not one that would take long to overcome.

"Ah, so the Keyblade bearer returns. Come to help the Beast, have you?"

Sora ignored the Beast completely, striding past him so he stood closer to Xaldin. "No," he spat, voice icy. "Beast can fight his own battles. I know he can take you down. I'm here for me." Sora kept his glare trained on Xaldin. "_I'm _taking you down, Xaldin."

Beast tried to protest this; Xaldin was in _his_ castle and had stolen _his_ rose and jerked _him_ like a puppet. _He_ was going to defeat him, no one else! He started to snarl, but Sora cut him off sharply. "This is my fight, Beast. So back off!" Keyblade suddenly flashing into existence, Sora took a battle pose. "Xaldin, you're going to pay for what you did!" His snarl was almost as good as one of the Beast's.

The frustrating thing about Nobodies, Sora was quickly finding out, was that he couldn't read them. Not all of them. Not that he'd ever been good at reading people anyway. Xaldin was very careful with his facial expressions, so it was almost impossible for him to figure out what he was thinking. "I'm sure I don't know what you mean." He said evenly. "Unless, of course, you've changed your mind and want this monster's rose back-"

"Don't play dumb with me! You ki-" Sora's voice faltered, but not for long. "You killed Isa!"

Killed Isa? ...Ah. So Sora, and probably that "family" of Isa's, thought him dead. They didn't know he was alive and in hiding. Good. Then they wouldn't miss him when he was turned and joined the Organization. This...this Xaldin could have fun with.

Xaldin smirked, summoning a portal to somewhere in Beast's castle and tossing the rose through it. "It wasn't a very difficult fight. Your friend wasn't nearly as strong as he made himself out to be. It was barely worth the effort it took to put him out of his misery. I seem to recall another of your friends who faced his downfall recently."

The smirk turned into a vile, vile grin. "Riku wasn't it? He didn't stand a chance. First Riku, now Isa...You aren't cut out to be a hero, let alone a Keyblade Bearer. How can you protect the worlds when you can't even protect your friends?"

Oh, Xaldin did _not _just go there.

That was, in a sense, the straw that broke the camel's back. Or rather, the last bit of emotional stress that broke the hero's composure.

_"Shut the hell up!"_

Sora charged at Xaldin, not planning on giving him any time to react before the first blow was struck. As he attacked, he initiated Drive for that extra edge in battle. Valor form, perhaps, for the highly increased attack power. Or Wisdom form for the ranged mobility. But as the light flashed, whichever of the two he had decided on in midair wasn't the outcome. Maybe it was the unbridled hatred he was feeling at that moment, or maybe that Valor Form when everyone was attacked at Hollow Bastion was just one too many.

The light faded and Xaldin leapt back just a little too late to avoid a hit. Blood dripped from the cuts on his arm made by Sora's claws. A mass of black with silver and blue highlights and the glowing yellow eyes of a Heartless darted away from Xaldin and settled at a safe distance. Wisps of darkness trailed from his arms and body and drifted up into the night.

Antiform.

Sora flashed towards Xaldin again, practically running on all fours. His claws came up once more as he neared the Nobody, ready to try and get one more hit in before Xaldin was armed and could fight him off.

This time, Xaldin was ready for the attack. He leapt back out of way of Sora's claws, leaving him to stumble and regain his balance when his target was suddenly gone. No time for a dramatic summoning of his weapons. He needed them _now._

Within seconds his lances were there and a powerful wind was whipping about, giving him the upper hand. Holding onto two of his lances tightly, Xaldin sent the other four zipping towards Sora. While the boy successfully dodged a couple, one cut into his shoulder and the other stabbed through his jacket and lodged into the stone.

Xaldin struck while Sora was pinned, moving swiftly across the courtyard and stabbing with one lance as he slashed with the other. Fighting to free himself for a moment, Sora gave up altogether and launched himself out of the way of Xaldin's next attack. With a rip, his jacket tore free of the weapon. Seconds later the Lancer landed right where he had just been trapped.

Not bothering to even stand up from where he was crouched, Sora leapt at Xaldin with his claws bared. This time he made contact, raking at his arm, shoulder and back. With a grunt of pain, Xaldin used a combination of wind and strength to shake him off and slam his side with the pole of a lance. The impact sent Sora skidding across the floor, but he was up and charging at Xaldin again in next to no time.

The fight continued in a similar manner for a while, the two of them lunging at each other, testing the waters and each other's strengths. After that last major wound Sora inflicted and the beating to his side and ribs he'd gotten in return, both were more wary.

Xaldin had gone into the fight expecting to blow through it. Give the kid a trouncing, but not actually kill him. He was still useful for gathering hearts, after all. But that had ended poorly for him; Now one shoulder and arm were hurt badly. He'd tried to shrug it off, but after one particularly hard block jarred the wounds, he had taken to favoring it it.

Fine. He was getting bored of melee combat anyway.

Deftly avoiding another of Sora's attacks, he leapt up into the slip stream of his wind, soaring above his opponent and sent his lances down after him in a string of vicious attacks. Along with a dozen or so Dragoons.

Just when he'd started trying to make bold attacks against the Lancer again, he whisked himself up out of reach. Sora snarled, then had to cut it short when he suddenly found himself being assaulted by lances raining from the sky and following his attempts to dodge them by riding the slipstreams he left in his wake. Sora threw himself violently to one side in an effort to escape at least a couple of the lances.

And, naturally, slammed right into a Dragoon.

Things were getting bad. Trying to dodge the lances left him entangled with the Nobodies, and vice verse. No way he was getting out of this unscathed. Rolling out of the way of a Dragoon's attack, Sora had to take another hit to his side from a lance so he could attack a different Dragoon. He slashed at its body with blood-caked claws until it crumpled and faded into nothing.

From there he leapt onto the back of another Nobody and similarly assaulted it. Then he turned to the next. Then the next. All the while he took hits from the lances he couldn't avoid. If he could get the Dragoons down, then maybe... just _maybe_, he could stand a chance.

Well fuck. Though Xaldin was injured rather badly, Sora was absolutely tearing through his Nobodies. What was with this kid? It had to be that messed-up Drive form. It was the only reason he could hold out this long.

With a twist of his hand, the wind changed and sent the lances at Sora once again. And he has timed it so they attacked as he was busy with the last Dragoon. _'Get out of that one, Sora.'_

Several somethings whistled through the air behind the boy. One sliced his leg, while another impaled the Nobody he was fighting, finishing it off for him. Sora landed hard on the ground and rolled out of the way of another lance before staggering to his feet.

As soon as was standing he had to start moving again, or be given a dozen tiny wounds by the blades and points of the lances dancing through the air around him. Though he did succeed in knocking several out of his way with his fists and arms, it was getting tiring to keep this up.

Then they were gone, swirling through the air around Xaldin once again.

Xaldin frowned down at the black and yellow smudge that was Sora. He was tiring, dizzy and weakening from blood loss. It was time to end this.

Dipping low in the wind, Xaldin hurled five of his six lances towards Sora and a particularly fast slipstream. He quickly touched down and raced across the ground at him, hoping that if he could catch Sora off guard with the two attacks, then maybe he could finish this once and for all. The Keyblade bearer was becoming too much of a liability in this fight.

It was almost a pity, but he'd have to die.

The lances and Xaldin reached their mark roughly at the same time. And then... everything happened at once. Somehow Sora had slipped between the lances and there wasn't enough room for them to turn around. Armed with only one lance, Xaldin couldn't adequately defend himself. Then Sora was in his face with those vile claws, slicing everywhere he could reach and-

Xaldin fought his way free and leapt back as soon as he could, but the damage was done. He staggered, only just barely staying standing as thin tendrils of black started to melt off his body. The wind was suddenly gone and the lances vanished in a slight breeze.

Sora crept forward on all fours. He could have continued the attack, but there was no point. Xaldin's fate was sealed. "_Why?_" He demanded, though it looked odd since his mouth was lost in the blackness of his face.

Xaldin grinned. "Because we could."

The shadows streaking up from his body grew thicker as more and more of Xaldin faded away. Within seconds the last of it disappeared up into the cloudy sky, leaving nothing behind but the wind.

Now that it was no longer fueled by his intense desire to end Xaldin, the Darkness of Antiform vanished. Sora stood there for a moment, breathing hard, then he slowly sank to his knees and let the newly reappeared keyblade fall from his hands and clatter against the stone. There. Xaldin was dead and he had collected his revenge for killing Isa, who was himself... avenged. Partially, at least. And that was good enough for right that second.

Sora could feel what resolve and control he'd been holding onto crumbling away, but he still tried to halfheartedly keep his emotions under control. He couldn't fall apart. Not now. He had to go tell Cid and the others that Xaldin had been killed, and...and he had to track down who that eyepatched guy was, and find where Axel had run off to, and... He had to keep it together. He _had_ to.

His excuses were feeling pretty weak, even to him. Sora swallowed hard and dismissed his keyblade in a shower of sparkles, fighting and mostly failing to keep his emotions under control. He was just so tired, and hearing about Isa- about his- him...

Oh, dammit all.

Then Belle was there, dropping to her knees, pulling the boy into her arms. She held his head gently to her shoulder, rocking him and stroking his hair.

"Shhh..." she soothed. "It's alright. Let it out."

That was all it took for Sora to lose it and well and truly break down.

It was all Sora could do to cling to Belle and sob into her shoulder. He was tired and sore and miserable and his injuries from the fight were hurting like no one's business. This was really what he needed; the opportunity to just fall apart so he could collect himself again.

"Shhh. I know. It hurts. I know." Belle rocked with Sora as he cried, continuing to mutter soothingly until he started to calm down. When the boy's sobs had tapered off into sniffles, Belle loosened her grip just enough to be able to lean back and see Sora's face. She brushed his bangs back gently.

"Do you want to talk about it? It might make you feel better."

Sora drew a shuddering breath, trying not to look at Belle. She was right. Talking _would_ probably make him feel better, but he really didn't want to. It was recent and painful and... and...

And then he was talking, his voice hoarse from crying. About Isa and how he had found Axel again and trusted him despite Sora's warning against it, and then Axel went and got Isa killed and he couldn't find Riku anywhere no matter where he looked and he was probably... probably dead and...

Kingdom Hearts, he was going to fall apart again. Sora pressed the heel of a blood-crusted, filthy palm to one red eye, trying and failing to keep it together.

"Hey, now," Belle said soothingly. "I'm sure Riku is alright. I'm sure he's just got something he needs to do before he can meet with you. You'll see him again."

Belle stroked Sora's bangs back, kissing his forehead. "...I'm sorry about your friend. Maybe you should go back and talk to his family. I think it would help more than talking to me."

"Y-yeah. I should do that." He sniffed, then got to his feet and offered a hand to Belle, helping her up. He was a little wobbly, but he'd be fine. "Thanks, Belle. And..." Sora looked over at the Beast, then averted his eyes again. "Sorry, Beast. About earlier, right before the fight."

With that, he headed back towards the castle and the landing point of the Gummi.

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In the morning (or what could be figured was the morning, given the sun never rose or set in the World that Never Was), there were a few heavy knocks on Demyx's door. Xigbar didn't want to have to go around playing zookeeper in this Disorganization, but being one of the only senior members left who wasn't Xemnas and wasn't busy, the duty sort of fell on him to get people's asses into gear. He would have much rather let Xaldin take over, bossing people around, but he supposed in the meantime, while the Lancer was busy with his big, elaborate missions...

"I'm comin' in," he warned dully. He didn't care if they were still asleep, if they were naked, or if they were fucking. There was work to be done.

Xigbar opened the door and stepped inside, scooping up Axel's discarded coat from the ground as he moved swiftly over to the bed and tossed it down on the redhead.

"Let's get this show on the road."

No, no it couldn't be morning already. Axel propped himself up, Xigbar standing over him expectantly and a snoring blonde mop of a mess lying next to him. After a stretch he grabbed his coat and decided not to argue; he was thankful he was even alive after yesterday's run in with II and III.

"Alright man, gimme a sec to get dressed, I'm kinda indecent under these covers. Unless yer into that thing," he leaned over, trying to find his pants in the mess on Demyx's floor. No such luck, he'd have to wait 'til Xigbar left to search more.

What an interesting way to start the day off. Isa could very well die today- no no, he didn't care. He couldn't care.

'I'm a Nobody, this shouldn't matter to me,' he idly thought as he glanced over at the sleeping Nocturne, and then to Xigbar closing the door behind him. Axel rolled out of bed, searching for his discarded clothes.

Yeah, today was going to be a long day.

"You take fucking forever," Xigbar commented as the redhead finally came out, dressed and ready. He gestured to his head, nodding at Axel. "Your hair's a little fucked, do you need time to fix it and do your make up too?" He was obviously teasing, something that Xigbar did on a regular basis, but his joking would stop pretty soon. In fact, it stopped when Axel opened a portal for their destination. The second in command would play with the others when he arrived, but rather than his harmless kidding-around, it would be far more scathing, intended to elicit a reaction.

"Age before beauty," he said to Axel with a grin, gesturing for the Flurry to head through first.


	9. Traitor

A/N; And we're back with another chapter! Enjoy!

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Axel stepped out of the portal; a strange emptiness came across his face as he looked up at the old mansion. Xigbar stepped out behind him, looking up at the mansion as well, obviously waiting for something to come out of Axel's mouth.

But he couldn't really say much, other than to point to the building in front of them. Isa was still inside; at least he hoped so. That man was so unpredictable now.

...Guess Axel was, too. Man, how things had changed.

Thankfully it was just Xigbar. Who knew why Xaldin didn't show up? With Riku lurking around, Isa and him, yeah, they could definitely take down the Sniper- wait, what was Axel thinking? He didn't care who won, as long as it meant _someone_ was out of his hair. Right right, he didn't care either way. But it would still be wise to avoid having to fight in this situation; Riku would ruin him. And well, Isa, yeah, he really didn't want to face Isa. Axel turned to Xigbar, finally opening his mouth to speak.

"He should be inside. I should probably go in first and take advantage of how riled up he'll get to see me, I guess. You know, all that crap Xaldin rambled on about hearts making you weak blah blah. Sound like a plan?" He glanced back at the Sniper, not really waiting for a response as he walked towards the gates.

Better get this over with, the more he stalled...the more he felt.

Xigbar followed after Axel, keeping a bit of distance. For the moment. He would move in for the kill once he heard shit hitting the fan, and he was almost completely certain that it would.

"Good luck there, Flamesilocks," he grinned to Axel, giving him a little nod.

Axel shoved the door open and walked into the main hallway, not even trying to be stealthy. Not a very smart approach, but the Nobody didn't really fucking care. His shoulders were stiff and his breathing a bit shallow, but he had this under control. He listened closely; a faint sound of people talking upstairs, and footsteps pacing. The redhead took a deep breath and headed up the staircase, coming up to a familiar door.

_Isa. _Axel could hear his voice from the other side of the door. This was not the time to panic, any feeling of regret was just an illusion. Right? He gritted his teeth and yanked the door open, ready to come face to face with trouble.

_Isa, Namine. I'm sorry. I'm not really sure what I'm doing anymore._

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After a good night's sleep, Isa's head felt much clearer. He had woken some time earlier, but had only recently gotten up, choosing to simply lay in bed for an hour or two to just think.

Isa's ultimate goals hadn't changed. He still wanted to destroy the Organization and recover Lea's heart. To that end, he _needed_ to know more about both the Organization and their research on hearts. Which meant he still desperately needed the research notes on the computer in Hollow Bastion.

Isa was feeling much stronger after a good night's sleep, as well. He realized he was in no condition for a fight, but he was at least capable of standing on his own without wobbling too badly. He had been able to walk normally to the door to call Namine and Riku into the room to inform them of his thoughts. He was even able to lift his claymore, setting about cleaning the blood from it as he talked. Isa had been just about to ask Riku to retrieve the notes himself when the door was suddenly yanked open.

All conversation in the room stopped. For a few moments everyone was frozen. Then, Isa set his claymore aside, slowly standing.

"Lea. You came back." His voice sounded both hopeful and slightly surprised. The blue-haired man started towards the redhead.

"...I apologize for snapping at you. I think you misunderstood what I meant-"

_No Axel, do not falter. You need to get Roxas back. Don't fool yourself._

"No no, I think _**you**_ misunderstood. I see yer still not looking too well," Axel took a step back and summoned his chakrams. Isa stopped where he was in confusion. "Brought a friend who's dying to check up on yah. I'm ready if you are, Isa."

The second in command slipped into the room, stepping beside Axel and summoning his guns.

"Nice intro there," he chuckled to Axel, glancing at him briefly before looking over at Isa.

"Well, well, good to see you up and at'em. We were so disappointed when we thought you died." He grinned.

Isa's brain ground to a stop. He was frozen to the spot, totally unable to comprehend what was going on. He didn't hear Namine's startled cry or Riku summoning his weapon behind him. Nothing made sense.

Lea...sold him out?

Axel's glare met Isa's startled gaze. Why was he shocked? He was asking for this, he wanted this and Axel brought it right to him.

But the Nobody still felt a pang of regret hit him, right as he started to attack. The room was spinning all of a sudden.

_Please, please block, Isa._

Bur Isa couldn't move. His disbelief had him frozen in place, watching the chakram spinning towards him-

Until someone jerked him backwards, a wing-like sword slicing in front of him and knocking the chakram away. Time suddenly slammed back into normal flow as Isa stumbled back towards the bed. He snatched up his claymore out of instinct more than choice, staring at the red-headed Nobody for a moment longer.

"Lea! What-" He couldn't wipe the disbelief from his face, couldn't even feel _angry_, he was in such shock. "How could-"

This was more entertaining than Xigbar'd imagined it would be. He'd have a field day describing this to Xaldin when he got back, too bad he'd had that mission to deal with. Xigbar could appreciate Xaldin's fine craft of manipulation, getting people to do things like this. Except Axel had done it of his own free will, which made it even better!

He grinned broadly, basking in the betrayal that was occurring before him.

"Let's not get too sappy here, folks. Fact of the matter is Axel's on our side now, he's a part of this little Organization..." He smirked. "Isa! Why don't you join him, eh? Could make a good team in this quaint little group."

Axel glanced over to the bluehaired man. Xigbar was spouting his usual taunts, still getting no real reaction out of Isa. Axel knew he couldn't take on either him _or_ Riku. If he backed down now, they'd surely be able to take on Xigbar by themselves right? ...It's not as if Xaldin would have to know if they successfully destroyed the Sniper. He could have just become collateral damage...

Oh what a web Axel was weaving himself into. This would not end well.

"Come on Isa, aren't you going to fight? You're going to die otherwise, is that what you really wanted?" he charged at Isa full force this time, chakrams ablaze.

_C'mon you idiot, fight back. I need a diversion to get out of here._

As much as he didn't want to believe it, the fact of the matter was finally getting through to Isa. He couldn't deny what was right in front of his face.

Lea betrayed him.

..._Axel _betrayed him. Sold him out to save his own hide.

The pain Isa felt at that quickly morphed into fury. But Isa was too tired and weak to Berserk again; for the first time in 10 years, Isa could feel the full effect of his anger. It made him almost sick. His shoulders heaved, and he shut his eyes tight, shaking his head slowly. He opened his eyes when he heard Axel's voice, saw the Nobody coming at him.

...well. Isa had sworn to destroy the Organization. He might as well start with the easy pickings.

Isa swung his claymore with a speed that seemed impossible for a man so injured. The heavy blade whistled horizontally through the air towards Axel's waist. Isa fully intended to cleave the man in half. He would kill Axel for this. Axel. Not Lea. Axel.

And yet, in the moment before his blade would have struck, Axel's startled expression matched Lea's on that day so long ago, when Isa had started on the path that had brought him here. He found his swing slowing, his blade turning sideways. Instead of slicing through the redhead, the flat of Isa's blade smacked soundly into him. But the swing had slowed; if Isa had not hesitated, even being struck by the flat would have crushed Axel's bones. Instead, it sent him flying painfully but non-fatally into a wall.

Isa let the end of his claymore drop. Swinging it again would be almost impossible.

What a wake up call. Isa could very well have killed Axel, but he didn't? No no, don't dwell on it- shit. What had he done? Axel needed to get out of the mansion but that was pretty much impossible now. But Isa was so injured, he could only hope Riku could step in and- Wait, what side was he on, anyway?

Fuck, he didn't want to lose Isa. That was the real fact of the matter. He felt something, and even if it was faint it was still something. This man Isa was nuts but, _he didn't kill him_. Axel could turn this around though, right? There were more than enough of them to take down Xigbar on their own. But there was no way they'd trust him to pick off the Sniper at this point. He'd have to act, surprise him, but Isa really messed him up for the time being... what to do, what to do...

Xigbar was already loading his guns, guess it was time to make a decision.

Whether Axel was sliced in two or battered against the wall, it didn't matter much to Xigbar what happened to him. The mission wasn't 'Save Axel's ass', it was 'Bring Isa's ass back'. Though, the fact that Isa _didn't_ just finish the redhead off there and then was, in retrospect, a bit of a nuisance; could have killed two birds with one claymore.

He disappeared just in time to dodge an attack from Riku and reappeared beside Isa, roughly elbowing the bluehaired man in the side and dislodging the claymore from his hand. Unlike Nobodies, this guy actually could be disarmed, and Isa had already done the work of wearing himself down. But Isa whipped around with a snarl. Oh, Braig had NOT just done that. He drew his fist back and drove it into Xigbar's face as hard as he could.

Isa dove past the reeling Nobody, landing on the hilt of his sword and rolling to his feet. He felt stitches popping in his back, but he didn't have time to worry about that. In an instant he had snatched up the coat draped over the chair and swung it around his shoulders like a cloak. He had no time to jam his arms in the sleeves or zip it up, yelling to Riku even as he moved.

"Make a portal! Now!"

With a curt nod, Riku opened a portal not far from Isa and shoved Namine ahead of him towards it. He'd have to apologize for being rough with her later, but there wasn't any time. Sprinting past Xigbar, he slid right through the portal and into the dark corridor, taking Namine with him.

Isa lunged through the portal right behind Riku, dragging his claymore with him. The second he was through, Riku snapped the entrance shut. Isa could feel blood running down his back, but that would have to wait. They needed to get somewhere safe. Somewhere the Organization wouldn't think to look for him. Isa, though, just wanted to go home, but...

...wait. Maybe he could do that. He frowned determinedly.

"...take us to Traverse Town, if you can."

Once Isa gave him a destination, Riku raised a hand. "Sure." Their exit portal appeared not too far away. A bit of a walk later, Riku letting the other two go first, and they were in Traverse Town.

It was a pretty good idea. Riku didn't know if the Organization knew about the existence of Traverse Town, but even if they did it would be hard to locate. He glanced over at Isa. "Where can we hide out here? We're going to have to patch up your wounds again."

Isa breathed a sigh of relief as they exited the portal. The coat had been less effective just thrown over him; it had kept him upright and safe, but he'd been able to feel the cold seeping in. He removed it the instant they were out, draping it over the arm that wasn't dragging his blade.

"This way." Isa led the way slowly towards the little house in the Second District where he had watched the littles grow up. His movements were slow enough that Namine felt the need to sidle under his arm to help him stay up. Isa let her do that; if she wanted to help, that was her prerogative.

When they reached the house, Isa placed his shoulder against the door, then slammed into it. The lock gave with a crack. Traverse Town was completely abandoned, so no one was there to wonder what the three of them were up to.

Isa stepped inside the house he hadn't seen in a year. They had left a lot behind when the family had left; much of the furniture was still there, untouched. Isa gestured to the living room.

"...make yourself at home. If you'll excuse me..."

Without looking to see what the two would do, Isa removed himself from the room. He left coat and claymore behind as he started down the hall towards his old bedroom. The gravity of what had just happened was starting to hit him, but he just felt numb. He sat down on his old bed, staring into space for a long while.

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A portal opened up in the lounge and Axel was tossed in onto a couch, followed slowly after by Xigbar. Damn, that Isa kid had a good right hook. Xigbar was sure he'd have a bruise by the next day.

He looked over at Axel, unimpressed, and sighed as the portal closed behind him.

"Welp, that was a waste of fuckin' time." Could have been worse, Axel could have lied about Isa being there at all.

Axel grumbled something under his breath. He rolled over, winced in pain, and then decided moving was not going to be happening for a few hours. Xigbar didn't look too impressed and, well shit, the redhead wasn't impressed either. His plan was shot out the window. He was not expecting Isa to just up and leave but...he did deserve it. He wasn't exactly earning anyone's trust; hell, Xigbar probably didn't have reason to trust him either after that incident.

_Fuck, Isa, where did you run off to?_ And why did Axel even_ care?  
><em>  
>Maybe he should actually formulate a plan before he got in any deeper trouble. But to be honest, he was lost without- Hrng, fuck it. He'd come up with a plan, just not right now. He didn't fuck up, Isa was in over his head too. Right? Axel still felt some unease about the whole situation. He couldn't help but wonder if Isa was safe, wherever he was...why couldn't he have just finished off Xigbar like he'd hoped? Man, this was just too complicated. He wanted someone to just pop up with a solution but, well, here he was. Groaning in pain on a sofa in the World that Never Was.<p>

"Well... can't say I was expecting that, man." What else could Axel say? He was screwed no matter what he said.

"Hard to predict these things," Xigbar replied, shrugging and sitting on the coffee table. He touched his cheek gingerly, admiring how tender it felt after that blow. He couldn't say he was all _that_ disappointed; it would have been far less interesting if they had just brought Isa back and that was that. Though, either way, Xigbar was sure that _something _more would happen to make the task that much more complicated.

But, who was he to complain? Sure, it would have been nice if Isa had just cut to the chase and cut Axel in two pieces, not like the redhead was any use anymore...

He sighed and looked over at Axel, trying to figure out what precisely to do now, when someone entered the room. Xigbar looked up to see Demyx standing in the doorway, looking at the pair of them miserably.

"What's wrong with you?" Xigbar asked, raising a brow. The mullet-haired Nobody groaned.

"Dude, Xaldin was killed. I just got word from some Dusks." Huffing, he came into the room, moving to lean on the back of the couch. It wasn't that he had any sort of feelings about Xaldin or anything that distressed him. It was...

"Man, you know what this means? _More work for me!_ I can't handle this, I am so not cut out for this whole thing..."

"Whine whine whine," Xigbar replied, standing up. So, Xaldin was dead now, too. Well fuck. He looked over at Demyx. "I take it it was the Keyblade brat?"

Demyx nodded. "Beast's Castle. Apparently Roxas flipped the fuck out. Well, that's roughly what the Dusks said."

Xigbar pursed his lips. That didn't put them in a great position. They were down to four useful Nobodies and one they couldn't really trust. This would take some time to figure out, and time... Well, Luxord was full of time, but in the long run there wasn't really a lot of plentiful time to waste.

Axel rolled over when Demyx walked into the room, and instantly regretted that decision. But what was this? Xaldin was dead?

...Well that was one less thing for Isa to worry about.

Maybe it was time for Axel to go investigate. Dragging Roxas back could make up for his failed mission today... and at the very least he could try and pry out information about Isa's whereabouts. Sora wasn't very bright, to say the least. He would probably think things were still fine between the two.

"Seems like Roxas is keeping busy huh? Maybe I should go check up on the kid, at the very least he might have some info about Isa. Kid trusts me now, you know that?" Axel tried to adjust himself on the couch, but shuddered in pain instead. "But uh, maybe tomorrow, tonight isn't looking so good."

Demyx looked over the back of the couch, a small grin on his face.

"You can, uh, heh, stay in my room tonight if you want." He paused as he realized something and groaned. "...seeing as I've gotta go on a mission soon. I wish they would send someone else instead, man..."

Xigbar smirked.

"You poor guy, leading such a hard, tough life. You wanna be leader instead, Dem? It's fun, you get to do _paperwork_."

Demyx grimaced and sunk further into himself.

"...that just sounds like boring work. My missions are just plain ol' _work_, that's a step up from writing out logs and reports and stuff."

Xigbar shook his head and folded his arms across his chest, moving towards the large window of the lobby, the heart shaped moon illuminating him. He wouldn't show it, but the fact that Xaldin was dead, his right hand man, kind of put a damper on his mood. Heh, so to speak. One less person he could trust, one less sane, dependable Nobody in what was left of that group. Friend? Not really, not anymore. That was an old concept for people with hearts. He wondered if he was seriously the only one who understood that.

Demyx looked down at Axel, now grinning.

"Well? You up for it?" he asked, his question pretty obvious if one knew the pair.

Axel thought about the offer for a moment, and while it was tempting, he had too much on his mind. Not to mention he was just slammed into a wall not too long ago. The truth was, he was tired of fucking everything up, and he guessed fucking everything could be added to that list too.

"Sorry bro, I'm kinda out of commission tonight. Maybe after your mission, give you some incentive to get it done quickly, yeah?" he nudged Demyx, trying not to make it too obvious what was on his mind.

Tomorrow he would go apologize to Namine, and then track down Sora. He was going to find Isa, and make things right. He didn't know how just yet but... he knew where to start at least. He didn't know how to explain it but, something wasn't right about leaving Isa behind. He just didn't _feel_ right.

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It wasn't until Sora had arrived at Hollow Bastion, having taken his time on the Gummy ride back from Beast's Castle, that he realized just what sort of state he was in. His clothes were torn and filthy, covered in blood from his numerous wounds of various sizes. Except for his hands, which were covered in _Xaldin's _blood. So that was totally different. Oh man, he'd probably gotten blood all over those nice clean clothes of Belle's.

At least his eyes and nose weren't red from crying anymore. Though there were probably some suspicious tracks through the dirt and blood on his face.

Sora knew that he should use a potion or cast a Cure spell before he got to Cid's house (or Merlin's. It was hard to keep track of whose house it was), but... he just didn't have the energy or interest. A result of that weird Drive form, maybe?

Presently, he arrived at the house, halfheartedly knocking on the front door. It was a pretty drastic departure from just bursting in like he owned the place, but he really didn't care.

Aerith opened the door, gasping softly when she saw the state Sora was in. She frowned worriedly.

"Oh, Sora, what happened to you...? Please, come in. Let me fix you up."

Aerith stepped back from the door, leaving room for Sora to come in past her. Leon was sitting at the computer, scowling frustratedly, but he glanced up when Sora came in. His frown deepened at the look of him.

"...you look terrible." he stated flatly.

Sora made a beeline for one of the still-whole chairs, sinking down into it. Oh wow. Sitting was nice. Sitting was very, very nice. Granted, he'd been sitting the whole Gummy ride over. But those things weren't exactly comfortable. Sora glanced over at Leon, but there was very little to none of his characteristic cheerfulness. "Yeah, so I noticed." He looked down, picking at torn bit of his pants. "I should have healed up on my way back, but... I kinda spaced on it."

Okay. He should just cut straight to the news, tell them what had happened. Right now, before he got sidetracked. Now that he was back at Is- _Cid's _house, that lump in his throat was coming back. Hopefully he could keep himself together this time.

Sora cleared his throat in a partially successful attempt to get rid of the lump. "Xaldin's dead." He said to the, quite fascinating, floor. "He... he won't give us any more trouble."

Leon froze momentarily, then slowly turned in is chair to face Sora. Aerith paused in the middle of unbottling a potion. Xaldin was...Sora had gone and fought Xaldin alone? And won? No wonder he was a mess. Aerith leaned forward and tipped the potion into Sora's mouth. She opened her mouth to speak, but Leon beat her to it.

"...That was meant to be my job." If he was being honest with himself, though, he knew he never could have taken on a man that Isa couldn't beat. He'd have stood no chance. Leon sighed roughly. "...But thank you. For stopping him from hurting anyone else."

...it wasn't like it was even really a surprise, losing Isa. Leon had been preparing himself for something like this for years. He felt like he had it more or less together, but he had thought himself more prepared than this. It still hurt, more than he had told himself it would. Aerith at least seemed like she had already accepted it before the loss had even happened, but Squall found himself angrier than he thought he would have been. He looked back up at the computer screen, at the password screen keeping him from accessing his brother's notes, and slammed his fist down onto the desk. Xaldin was dead. But Sora had done it, not Squall.

"...but. Leave Axel for us. Isa was your friend, but he was our brother. Axel's ours."

Sora nodded. "Yeah, of course. He's all yours." If he had a choice in the matter, he'd leave Axel for Leon and the others. But if Axel attacked him, he _would_ defend himself.

Still looking down at the floor, his feet, his hands, Sora noticed the color returning to his hands after that potion. He hadn't even noticed that he was pale. The amount of things he "hadn't even noticed" or thought about (such as healing himself) after that fight with Xaldin was starting to disturb him just a little.

Sora glanced over at Leon briefly. Just what was he working on over there that required a password screen? He should probably ask about that. But...

Sora hesitated a moment. "Leon, earlier you said that he 'got what he wanted'. What... what did you mean by that?" His voice was soft, like he wanted to ask but didn't actually want an answer. Which was the truth; Sora wasn't sure that he wanted to know what Leon was talking about.

Leon kept his eyes on his keyboard, his voice strangled and bitter.

"Isa had a death wish. The stupid, selfish _idiot_ was going out of his way trying to get killed before Radiant Garden even-"

_"Squall!"_ Aerith cut him off sharply. Her scowl softened into a frown as she turned back toward Sora. The poor boy looked completely shell-shocked; how was she going to word this...? She sighed softly and began to speak, her voice very quiet.

"...What Leon means is..." She paused to gather her thoughts. "...Isa was...a very sad person. Cid said he wasn't like that before the Heartless, but after Lea, well..." she sighed. "It haunted him. He saw it as his failure, and he never forgave himself. He _did _love us, and he always tried to act like he was alright for our sakes, but he...was never very good at lying. He...put himself in danger fairly often...he was never very careful about his safety. Sometimes, he was hurt badly, but he always brushed it off as unimportant."

Aerith frowned deeply, looking at her hands in her lap. "It...he wasn't conscious of it. He would never have gone off and deliberately ended his own life, but...he always seemed like he was looking for someone to do it for him. Or for another accident to finish the job, so to speak..."

She looked back up at Sora then. "...please try not to be too sad. Isa's not hurting anymore, and-" Her voice hitched then, turned strangled, and she cleared her throat and swallowed hard to keep it from wobbling. "...I just hope Axel kept his act up until-...if he did, then I think Isa was probably satisfied. I think he would have been happy, if he thought he was giving his life for Lea."

Distraught was a very good word to describe both how Sora looked and felt. He didn't say anything as Aerith explained what Leon had said, not trusting his voice enough to talk. When she finished he just nodded numbly to show he'd heard, not looking up from that fixed point on the floor.

The room descended into an awkward, miserable silence for several long minutes. Then Sora finally spoke up, his voice quiet. "I'm gonna head outside for a bit."

He stood up, walked across the room and opened the door. Stepping outside, Sora closed the door behind himself, then leaned against the wall next to it. After a bit he sighed then slid down the wall, pulled his knees up against his chest and rested his arms across them, staring at his hands. He was really going to need a shower; he was still absolutely filthy from the fight. Then he shifted his gaze from his hands to the ground. After a bit, he felt tears drip from his chin.

Sora had thought that he'd had everything together after sobbing into Belle's shoulder and talking with her. He had thought he'd be fine; still heartbroken over Isa's death, but mostly fine.

But now he'd just been told that Isa was unconsciously suicidal. That, on top of what Xaldin had said about Riku (which, to be quite honest, had hit him pretty hard), his own doubts and fears about his friend, and the news of Isa's death...

It was just all too much for him to handle. Sora dropped his forehead down to rest on his arms, not even trying or wanting to stop the tears. He was probably gonna make himself sick from all the crying he'd been doing today, but he didn't even care. He was exhausted and sore and upset and feeling homesick as hell after all the talking about Riku he'd been doing lately.

Home. Destiny Islands.

"I want to go home." Sora choked out around his quiet sobs.

He didn't know how long he was out there, sitting against the wall and crying in the chilly evening air. Especially since, at some point, he drifted off and fell asleep.

Aerith eventually came out to check on Sora, frowning softly when she saw him. Poor thing...

She ducked back into the house, returning with Leon, who scooped Sora up to carry him back inside. They might as well let the boy sleep there; it was already late and they didn't want to wake him up. Leon carried Sora to his own room and placed him on the bed; Leon would just sleep on the floor. Not that Leon would be able to sleep much. Of course, there was an empty bed in the house, but using Isa's room like that felt wrong. This arrangement was fine.


	10. Clash

It was quite a while before Isa returned to the living room of the house in Traverse Town. His eyes were red, but the blue-haired man was otherwise composed. More than composed; his face was impassive, but his eyes burned with a new determination.

"So the Organization wants a fight. Fine. We'll give them a fight." he said to Namine and Riku, his voice cold as ice. Isa turned to the white-haired young man.

"I'll need you to do something for me. My computer in Hollow Bastion contains a number of files I need. I would like you to retrieve them, if you can." Isa held out a mussed piece of paper; on it were scrawled instructions and a list of passwords. The state of the paper reflected Isa's emotional distress, even if he was composed now. The letters were shaky and smeared, and there was even a bit of blood marring one corner from his reopened wound dripping down his hand.

"Normally I wouldn't give out this information, but I am in no condition to be fighting if the house is being watched, and I need this data. I trust you can be stealthy?" Isa raised an eyebrow at Riku. "Do not get caught. If you go now, everyone should be sleeping."

If Isa had known him better, Riku would almost have been insulted. He'd only stalked the Organization for almost a year without them knowing (most of the time) and without being caught. But he took the paper without comment, carefully stashing it in the pocket of his coat. Riku flipped up his hood, plunging his face into shadows. "I'll be back with the data as soon as I can."

With that he portaled away, arriving at Hollow Bastion outside of Cid's house moments later. He could have portaled right into the house, but the chance of the sound waking up the inhabitants wasn't a risk he was willing to take. Quietly as he could, Riku instead slipped through the front door. Once inside it wasn't exactly hard to find the computer. Seeing as it was a huge thing right in front of him.

After a bit of hunting for something to put the files on, Riku had what he hoped was a blank disk at the ready. The paper containing both passwords and instructions were laid out and ready to go. Some squinting was required in some places, but he was able to make out what Isa had written.

The work was dull and uneventful, with lots of waiting interspersed with periodically inputting Isa's passwords. Every time the house creaked or there was some unexpected noise, Riku tensed, expecting someone to come out. But no. Everything was going fairly uneventfully.

And after a time, he had followed all of Isa's instructions and, hopefully, gotten all the data he had been wanting. Riku hit a button to eject the disk and reached for it.

"Who are you?"

Riku jerked, looking up quickly from the computer to see who had called at him. Standing in the mouth of the hall that he assumed lead to the bedrooms was...Oh. He stilled, one hand on the computer desk.

Sora.

Oh man. If he had known that Sora was going to be here, Riku might not have been so quick to head out. "_Who are you?_" Sora demanded again, though this time with a Keyblade in hand, glowering at him.

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As Leon had predicted, he had been unable to get any real sleep. Instead, he had laid awake long into the night, finally starting to doze in the small hours of the morning. He stirred a bit when Sora staggered up, but he assumed the boy needed the bathroom or something and chose not to get up himself. That was, until he heard a shout from the other room.

Leon leapt up and grabbed his gunblade, dashing out into the main room. He could see Sora already had his keyblade out before he even reached the end of the hall. Dammit, they could not catch a break, could they? That was when Leon saw the black coated man, but more importantly, saw what he was up to.

"What are you doing?" Leon recognized what was on-screen; how had this person defeated Isa's security in just the time since he had started dozing? He was sure he would have heard something if he'd been fully awake. Then Leon spotted the paper laying on the desk. He couldn't make out most of the words from where he was, but- was that...Isa's handwriting? ...yes, the writing was smudgy and unsteady, but...

"Where did you get that?" he snarled, pointing at the paper.

The cloaked man quickly pocketed the CD and stepped away from the computer, opening a portal to escape.

"Oh no you don't! Answer his question!" Sora snarled. A Freeze spell clipped the side of the stranger's head, knocking the hood back and revealing who he was. Of all the people Sora'd been expecting... _Ansem_ wasn't any of them. Sora froze. No. Ansem was dead, they'd seen to that. There was no way he could be here. It just wasn't possible!

Leon had never seen Ansem, so he had no reaction to the face. Instead he lunged forward to snatch the paper off the desk. He skimmed it quickly; this was...explicit instructions for how to access Isa's notes, complete with passwords, in Isa's own hand. Smudged and shaky, and with blood on the page...

Leon clenched the paper in his fist. His voice was low, furious.

"So. Axel kept his lie up to the very end, did he...?" Leon shook the paper at the cloaked man. "Is that how you got this out of him? Went too far to turn him into one of you, so you thought you'd still get some use out of him, did you? You couldn't even let him die in peace?"

Leon threw the page down, raising his gunblade. "You're despicable," he spat.

"Back off, Leon." Sora snapped. "Ansem is _mine_." With that, he lunged forward, Keyblade poised to strike.

However, before either of them could actually get a hit in on him, Ansem darted into the portal and closed it right on his own heels. Sora had to catch himself to keep from losing his balance when Ansem was suddenly not where he had been. He stood there glaring tight-lipped at the empty space where the portal had been, then slammed a shaking fist against the desktop. "_Dammit_."

Leon spent a few moments also staring at that empty spot. Then, he bent down and picked up the piece of paper. He sat down in the computer chair, smoothing out the new wrinkles, before folding the paper up.

Well. At least now Leon could finish Isa's work for him. There was that small mercy.

He didn't look up at Sora when he spoke, scowling. "I take it you know that guy."

Sora gripped his keyblade so tightly his knuckles turned white. "Ansem, Seeker of Darkness. He's the one that messed with Riku's head, that... _possessed_ him." He scowled, trying to put together what exactly had just happened. The computer, that paper, Leon's reaction...

"Those are the passwords for Isa's files, right?" Sora glanced over at Leon. "What was he researching that would require passwords?"

"Hearts." Leon answered, scowling. "Or more specifically, the researchers who were studying hearts; the ones running the experiments that destroyed Radiant Garden. All their research notes were on a computer in the castle, but they're encrypted. Isa was trying to decode them, but he thought they were dangerous, so..."

Leon looked up at Sora then. "You heard what Isa said, the other day, about the researchers. They were doing experiments with hearts and the Heartless, locking people up with them just to see what would happen. The man in charge was the ruler of Radiant Garden, a man by the name of Ansem the Wise." Leon scowled then. "But that man? That wasn't him. Ansem the Wise was older than that when Radiant Garden fell, and he didn't look anything like that. But the research notes suggest there was somebody else calling himself that who made himself a Heartless on purpose. Maybe that person...?"

"I wouldn't be surprised if this was the researcher who was pretending to be Ansem." Sora replied, forcing himself to relax. "He's all about pretending to be people he's not." And manipulating anyone he could get his hands on to further his own agenda. "I don't know why he wanted those notes. But whatever the reason, I doubt it's a good one. Especially if he's working with the Organization, which it looks like he might be."

Leon sighed frustratedly, laying the paper down on the keyboard.

"It wouldn't surprise me at all." Actually, nothing would surprise him right then. He was completely burnt out, emotionally. He was done. Leon stood slowly.

"...I'm going back to sleep. The notes will still be a problem in the morning."

With that, he turned to wander back down towards his room, not caring what Sora did. He paused by the door to Isa's room, still left slightly ajar from when his brother had left it. His gaze drifted to the opening, then dropped to the doorknob. After a long moment, he gently closed the door.

Leon hung his head, then, drawing a deep breath through his nose, he headed back into his own room.

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Stepping from the dark portal and closing it behind himself, Riku strode over to where Namine was finishing patching Isa's wounds again.

"You'll excuse me if I don't get up," Isa quipped.

But Riku was in no mood for joking. He pulled the disk from his coat pocket. "Here's the data you wanted." He held out the disk for Isa, trying not to scowl. His brusque response gave the older man pause. Isa hesitated just for a moment before reaching to take the disk.

"...good work. I hope things went smoothly?" he asked, although he thought he knew the answer. "Nothing went wrong?"

"For the most part, yes. Then Leon and Sora showed up, very much awake. Leon got ahold of the paper and recognized your handwriting." Riku folded his arms over his chest and gave Isa a long, level look.

"They think you're dead, Isa. I don't know about the others, but Leon at least was extremely upset about it." And Sora...

Well. Riku reached up to rub his still-freezing ear. He really didn't want to think about it.

"Fuck." Isa groaned, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees and rub his face. He drew his hands down his face, letting his palms press together over his nose.

Lea must have tried to go through with his plan. He must have...fuck. Fuck. Now that he was coherent Isa had no desire to let his family think-... And the Organization knew he was alive, so that hadn't even done any good. Everything had totally backfired.

"...it can't be helped." he muttered softly, in a strangled voice. "Can't be helped. I can't go home without putting them in danger. And there's no one I could send that they would believe." There was nothing for it.

"...goddamnit, Lea..." he almost moaned. "Look what you've done, hngh..."

Riku moved to lean against a wall, pinching the bridge of his nose. Kingdom Hearts, Sora had looked like he was in fairly bad shape. What had that kid been up to? Knowing him, probably something dangerous and foolish. And to top it off, now Sora thought he was Ansem. Damn it.

Time enough to deal with that later, if all went well. They had to figure out what their next move was going to be. "So what's the plan now?" He asked quietly. "There isn't a computer on this entire world. That disk is as good as useless as long as it's here." And as long as he was asking questions... "And just what, exactly, has Axel done?"

Isa let his hands drop from his face.

"...we'll have to find a technologically advanced world I can cannibalize some parts from. It might take a while, though. Unless either of you know where I can find a computer"

"...there's DiZ's computer." Namine piped up softly. "In the basement of the mansion." She was sure it was sufficiently advanced, since it had been able to build an entire world. "But it might be dangerous to go back there."

Isa sighed. "Dangerous or not, it's our best option. I'll need to take a look at it. But it can wait until morning. We all need sleep."

He paused, then glanced over at Riku. "...and to answer your question...well, at least it looks like Lea tried to follow a plan." He gave a clipped sigh. "I was going to have HIM get that data for me. At the time, we thought the Organization was out to kill me, so if he encountered them he was to make them believe they'd succeeded. I thought that would give me time to recover and decode these notes. Lea must have tried to follow the plan when they caught him, and someone must have overheard him. But they must have threatened him..."

...at least it seemed he'd been reluctant to betray Isa. Maybe he'd thought Isa could handle it? Maybe-...maybe he was just making excuses.

"That's likely what happened." Riku sighed. "I don't like the idea of you going in there alone. Especially if the Organization does have their eye on the mansion. You can't portal yet, so if things turn ugly you won't have a way out." He sighed again, then dropped his hand down to rest on his arm. "But like you said, we all need sleep. It would be for the best if finalized this plan of yours in the morning."

Isa nodded. "Backup would be welcome. And I would prefer not being left on a world without means of escape, if it's all the same. But, that can wait. Sleep. Now."

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Sora had gotten up early, before anyone else was awake. After he had washed up, though that would do nothing for the state of his clothes, he headed out to the Gummy ship. Nothing against Cid and the crew, but he needed some peace and quiet to get his thoughts in order. And he wasn't going to get that done at the house. So he headed off to the abandoned mansion in Twilight Town where he had woken up.

He wandered past the gates, faltering when he noticed the front door was ajar. There shouldn't be anyone... It was probably nothing. Just some kids who had been exploring and didn't bother to close the door when they were done.

That thought flew out the window when Sora looked around and saw Axel halfway up the stairs, and the rage he had felt before fighting Xaldin came rushing back. That asshole. _Here?_ He had told Leon that he would let him have Axel, but...

The Keyblade was in Sora's hand before he even thought about it, and in a second he was charging across the room towards the stairs. "_Axel!_"

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Axel found himself outside the gates of the old mansion. He woke early that morning, trying to avoid any unnecessary run-ins with Xigbar or Demyx, and he still was in a bit of pain. Okay, a lot of pain. But he just had talking to do today, then he could rest... hopefully. He opened the front door, slowly this time, wondering exactly what he'd tell Namine. Well, the truth hopefully, but maybe she'd shove him in the right direction.

In _Isa's_ direction.

The redhead glanced around the main room, he heard some sounds but... he couldn't quite tell who was around. He shrugged, turning to head up the staircase. Hopefully Namine wasn't in trouble on his account.

"_Axel!_"

The Nobody swung around as Sora charged up the stairs, Keyblade in hand. What? What the hell was going on? Axel summoned his chakrams to defend, but he'd find himself cornered in a moment if he didn't act. He shoved the keyblade back with his weapons, making eye contact with Sora and _man was he pissed_. Sora almost fell when Axel shoved his keyblade back, throwing off his balance on the stairs. But he recovered quickly, not even bothering to stop and reply before he leapt up the stairs at Axel again. The Nobody jumped back, defending again with his chakrams. He was not in the mood, nor condition, to fight right now.

"Mind giving me an explanation, kid? You shouldn't go swinging that thing around for no reason, you might get yourself hurt."

Sora lunged after Axel and swung the keyblade down, catching the end on a chakram. The weapons were locked for a moment, and during that pause he responded. "I don't have to explain myself to _you_." Sora snarled. "But I'll tell you anyway; _You're the reason Isa's dead!_"

Axel stopped dead in his tracks.

"I-Isa is...?" No... No... Was it because he left him behind? Sora really wasn't kidding... Oh no, what had he done.

No no no

**NO**

Sora continued to charge at Axel, this time with more fury. But Axel just stood frozen. The keyblade landed a blow to his face, forcing him to his knees, blood splattering the floor.

"He... he's really gone?" Axel choked out. Damnit, there were not words to describe how much he had fucked up. There were not words.

Now was a terribly bad time to realize the aching in his chest was not just a facade.

Standing in front of Axel, keyblade half raised and held in both hands, Sora almost didn't answer him. "_You_ should know." Despite the utter hatred and rage he was feeling, his voice was level and icy. "It's your fault."

It _was _his fault. It _was_.

What had he done. There was an awful pang in his chest, forcing Axel over again. Of all the emotions to hit him first, why did it have to be this one? Another blow from the keyblade, this time with more blood. Axel didn't care, he didn't fucking care. He deserved this.

_Isa._

Axel slumped over, blood trickling down his face. And now tears. Great. But... well he had nothing to hide anymore- Sora would probably finish him off here.

Well, he guessed that was how it goes.

_"NO!"_

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The next morning found Isa feeling much better than he had the day before. Somehow a good night's sleep in what had been his own bed for 8 years made a real difference. He also had a new shirt; some of their old clothes had been left behind when the family had relocated, and so Isa was finally able to throw out the tattered, bloody rag he'd been wearing since the fight with Xaldin. He felt much better just for having clean clothes.

He was the first one awake, but there was no food in the house, so he couldn't exactly make himself a cup of coffee. Instead, he just sat and thought.

Lea had sold him out. That much was obvious. But...if it had been that or letting himself be killed, could Isa really be angry? Of course he would want Lea to save himself, but...was it out of necessity or spite? Isa's mind just kept going in circles; he couldn't resolve this until he spoke to Lea himself.

Thankfully Riku wasn't long in waking. Isa looked up as he entered.

"Are you ready? We should make this quick."

"Yes, I am. Let's get this started."

Riku opened the portal and went on ahead, emerging not far from DiZ's computer, hidden below the mansion. Isa sighed, picking up his claymore after putting on that detestable coat. It couldn't be helped; he didn't want to go through that cold again. Riku left the portal open until Isa had come through, then closed it, moving over to stand by the side of the giant computer console. Yay. Back to standing by this thing while someone else worked at it. Couldn't say he had missed that. But it was the best way to keep an eye on Isa and get him out in case anything happened.

Isa didn't bother removing his coat when they arrived, as much as it turned his stomach to have it touching him. He was too worried about not having it on hand in case they needed to make a hasty exit; it had joined his claymore temporarily in his list of things he felt compelled to keep near him. He leaned the claymore in question against the wall as he bent to inspect the computer. Firing it up, it was soon clear that the system was almost exactly the same as the one in the castle in Hollow Bastion. His disk read with no problem. Strange...

Isa's concentration was suddenly broken by a crash from upstairs. He frowned, grabbing his claymore and starting up the stairs. He paused to call to Riku.

"I'll investigate. I'll call if I need help."

With that, he hurried the rest of the way upstairs. He expected an attack, an ambush, something- but what he found instead had him stopping in his tracks. That lasted all of half a moment; Lea was kneeling slumped on the ground, bloody and crying, with Sora raising his weapon to finish him.

_"NO!"_

Isa's heart leapt into his throat at the same moment that he himself leapt over the banister, landing between the two and smacking the keyblade away. He lowered his claymore, snapping.

"What do you think you're doing, Sora?"

Axel's head jerked up at the sound of Isa's voice. The Nobody stared in awe.

Was this really happening?

He tried to open his mouth to speak but nothing would come out.

The impact with Isa's claymore had been enough to bounce the Keyblade back a fair bit, wrenching Sora's arm. The Keybearer hissed in pain. But then Sora saw just what and, more importantly, _who _had deflected his attack. He stilled, the rage draining out of him as he just stood and blinked at Isa.

Granted, Isa in an Organization cloak, but Isa all the same.

"... Isa. You're... you're..." His voice gave out on him. What in the world could he say? Tell the man that was quite clearly standing in front of him that he was dead? And that the Nobody he was protecting had led him to that death? Yeah, because _that_ wouldn't make him sound like a raving lunatic.

Sora swallowed thickly, trying to find where he had misplaced his voice to. "... You're _alive_."

Isa let the end of his claymore hit the ground, leaning on it a bit. He was definitely too injured for this sort of thing.

"...yes." he replied, "I was rather surprised to hear I was dead, it was quite the shock."

It felt like Sora couldn't think, and he probably couldn't. All he could do was stare at Isa, not entirely believing what his eyes were telling him but having no reason not to. "... I... how..."

Isa was here and he was fine and he was _alive_. That was really the most important bit, him being alive. Sora tore his eyes off of Isa (Alive! Not dead!) and glanced at Axel, only to have his eyes drawn down towards-

Blood. Dripping from under Isa's coat to pool and mix with Axel's on the floor.

His breath caught in his throat, and all at once his brain was functioning again. "Isa, you're hurt!"

"Hngh. Yes well...Xaldin did a bit of a number on me. But I'm fine."

Sora tensed for a moment. "... About him. You don't really have to worry about Xaldin anymore. He's dead." He lowered the Keyblade, letting the end of it rest against the ground. "He said that you and-" _Riku_. "Were dead. It was stupid to listen to him, but..." Sora gestured helplessly with his free hand.

Axel turned to Sora, feeling a weird mixture of... emotions? Well, whatever they were, Axel was not amused. In fact, he felt so sick he could hardly stomach it.

"What the hell gives you the right to swing these fuckin' accusations around? I know yer a complete dunce, Roxas, but give me a break." Axel tried to stand up; he couldn't exactly be threatening while slumped over on the ground, but his back wasn't cooperating. Nothing was cooperating. He choked out a small cry of pain and fell back to the floor. Whatever.

"You were about to kill me, and you didn't even have your facts straight? And you say I'm not the one to be trust-" he cut himself off, mid foot-in-mouth. Who was he to talk right now?

He looked up at Isa, who wasn't in great condition either. "Why did you save me... after what I did?"

Isa instantly had his full attention on the redhead. Lea's pained noise broke his heart; this man had stabbed him in the back, abandoned him- but Isa couldn't care. He couldn't bear to see Lea slumped on the floor and looking such a mess. Isa bent down and wrapped an arm underneath Lea's arms, hauling him up to his feet and helping him stand.

"I couldn't do anything else."

Sora shot a vicious glare at Axel. "Oh, like you didn't think any different once I said anything!" He snapped, "Though I don't know why you were surprised, since Leon found out by listening in on your conversation with your two pals. And I'm _not_ Roxas, so you can stop calling me that already." His arm was hurting him; the keyblade was just too heavy to hold after he had injured it like that when his attack bounced off Isa's claymore. But he didn't trust Axel enough, even as hurt as he was, to dismiss it.

Axel didn't know how to come back to that. Leon had overheard his conversation? He knew it was stupid to hang around Isa's house for too long... Just how many people did he have lining up to kick his ass?

Thankfully Isa wasn't one of them, yet.

"I, yeah. It's true, I told them you were dead, Isa. But I didn't know we had guests snooping around. I guess it's fortunate for me they didn't hear the rest of the conversation, but I dunno what's worse. Thinking I was the cause of your death, or listening in to find out I arranged the attack the other day. Though honestly I was hoping you'd just kill off the old man but... well, you don't have any reason to believe what I say at this point. I came here to check on Namine, and then this jerk showed up. The end, heh."

He let out a long sigh, hunching over again in pain. Blood was everywhere, he really should look into patching himself up. But what did he deserve at that point?

"So I say again, why would you save me after I betrayed you. I'm just worthless at this point, I can't even keep a damn promise."

Isa scowled deeply. "You're an _idiot._ After everything I told you, do you _honestly _think I could just stand by and watch you be killed in front of me? That's not something I could stomach, Lea."

He adjusted his grip on the Nobody, looping the redhead's arm around his neck and wrapping an arm around his waist to take most of his weight. Isa could feel the swelling over Lea's ribs, and he winced a bit. He suspected he was responsible for that. He sighed, starting up the stairs towards the spare room where he had slept after his fight with Xaldin. He glanced back at Sora, then jerked his head to indicate he should follow, before turning back to Lea.

"...well at least you TRIED to follow a plan, for a little while..." he muttered. "It would have been better off if you had been more careful of your surroundings, though. And so you know, Namine is fine. I suspect she's even still asleep; we left rather early this morning."

Isa set the Nobody down on the bed, sitting in the chair and frowning.

"...but I want to know. Why did you sell me out?"

It was true, Axel followed the plan for all of two seconds. The moment he saw an opportunity to betray the man, he took it. But the second he confronted him in person well, that was a different story.

"I told Xigbar and Xaldin you were dead. Turns out they wanted you in the Organization after all. They were going to kill me on the spot, but I told them I lied, you were alive, and agreed to take them to you if they let me back in the Organization. Apparently they really wanted you in their ranks, they took me back no problem. But I guess Roxas, er, Sora took down Xaldin, so Xigbar accompanied me to the mansion. But the second I got here I just, I couldn't do it. I was shocked when you didn't kill me, but I guess it was the wake up call I needed, yeah. Isa, y'know, you have no reason to believe me, and it feels really stupid to say," he took a deep sigh, focusing his eyes on the ceiling. "But I'm supposed to be a Nobody, yet thinking what I did actually killed you..."

That was hard to hear. Isa took a long, shuddering breath, then let it out through his nose. It had happened. But Isa couldn't be angry, even though he wanted to be.

"...they let you live because you did that. So...so I'm glad you did."

He lifted Lea's hand in his own, pressing his forehead to the back of it and closing his eyes tight.

"...I wanted to kill you then. I was going to do it. But I looked at your face, and I couldn't- ...I couldn't." He knew he never would be able to. He pressed his lips to the back of Lea's hand.

"...I'm sorry. Please don't leave me again."

Maybe Isa _was _crazy. This was completely irrational, but Axel couldn't exactly justify his 'horrible Nobody existence' when he felt tears rolling down his face again, this time in sobs. He didn't deserve this, but this man was completely devoted to him. And even if he was a bit off the handle, Axel guessed he didn't have room to talk at this point.

"I'm the one who should be sorry, y'know. I can't blame you for what you did, but hey, I asked for it." Axel held onto Isa's hand; this felt right. Yeah. There was definitely a feeling, a good one this time. What was going on, this made no sense... "...I promise, Isa. Just...keep me in check. Hah, just like old times, right? Y'know yer the only one I trust to do that. Clearly I can't make decisions on my own." Well yeah, it was the truth, but it didn't hurt his ego any less.

He tugged a bit on Isa's hand, before realizing Sora was still standing in the doorway. Surely he thought this was all an act or something, but that was his problem. Still, Axel wasn't going to tug any further until the two were alone.


	11. Reconciled

A/N: Sorry for the delay with this chapter; real life's gotten a bit hectic lately so expect a bit of erratic posting. Also, if you haven't read "Missing the Sun" yet, you may wish to do so (although it's not strictly necessary) as there is a minor reference to it in this chapter which may otherwise be a bit confusing. It's not essential to the plot, though, so don't worry if you haven't read it.

Now on with the story!

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Right after they had gotten to the spare bedroom, Sora gave up on the keyblade, dismissing it to the instant relief of his arm. And then there wasn't much for him to do, other then stand there a little awkwardly and pretend to ignore Isa and Axel. He had realized he should tell Isa about the Organization showing up last night, but they were kind of having a moment and it felt wrong is disturb them.

Then, of course, Axel noticed him again and Sora figured it was probably safe to say something. He abandoned the doorway in favor of standing against a wall instead, where his back wasn't exposed. "Sorry to interrupt, but the Organization showed up at Cid's last night and stole your research, Isa."

"Hm?" Isa glanced up at the teenager, taking a moment to process what he'd been asked. "No, that was on my orders. I needed my notes, but I couldn't very well go home myself, so I asked Riku to-" Isa suddenly cut himself off, looking like he'd realized he'd said something he shouldn't.

Sora froze dead. If he had still been holding the keyblade, he would have flat-out dropped the thing from shock. Riku... Isa had been working with Riku? He was fine? "... You've been in contact with Riku?" he asked breathlessly, a little stunned. Then the questions started coming one right after another. "How is he? Is he okay? Where's he been? Where is he _now_?"

Isa looked away from Sora uncomfortably, almost squirming. Dammit, he had NOT meant to say that. Damn himself. He hadn't been thinking, he'd been too distracted, and he was bad enough at deception under the best of circumstances. Maybe he'd better not say anything more, Riku wanted to keep himself hidden-

Riku was an idiot teenager. He might be Isa's comrade now, but Sora had been his friend for much longer. He couldn't look Sora in the face and leave him to worry. Well, he didn't look Sora in the face anyway.

"...Riku's fine. He's unharmed. He..." Isa made a frustrated grumbling noise. "He...had a little incident and he's embarrassed to be seen by you until he resolves it. He's probably going to be furious I said anything, but...there you have it."

Sora slumped against the wall with a sigh at that news. "Better then I'd been expecting. Guy's an idiot, but I can't exactly track him down and knock some sense into him." Not yet, at least. Sora looked over at Isa again, his voice hopeful. "I don't suppose you can tell me anything else?" Even if he couldn't, this was the most news he'd gotten about Riku since he'd woken up. More even than he'd gotten from the King; not that he'd been a fat lot of help. It would be enough to keep him from thinking he'd messed up after the last time he'd seen Riku. For a while, at least.

Isa avoided looking at Sora. "...I think he'd rather tell you about it himself, when he feels ready. But Riku is extremely strong and he has allies. He'll be alright." That was as much as he thought he could get away with telling Sora without feeling like he was being unfair to Riku. What a situation. Things were much simpler before all this, but...his thumb stroked the back of Lea's hand. He couldn't really complain about it all, except...

Isa's scar wrinkled as he frowned. "I understand the littles believe...are they alright?"

Sora shifted uncomfortably. "They're... well, they're dealing. But it hit them hard, Leon and Yuffie especially. Yuffie burst into tears when I asked about you. And Leon..." he frowned, looking away from Isa to stare at the ground. It wasn't hard to remember how Leon reacted the previous night when he'd asked for clarification. "He just gets angry and upset whenever you're brought up. They're _devastated_, Isa. It'd really be a comfort for them to know you're actually alright."

Devastated. Hnngh.

Isa made a strange face; he wasn't sure what he felt or what to do about it. He didn't want the littles getting hurt, but if they were hurting already...dammit, what should he do.

On the one hand, he didn't want any of them getting killed. If he contacted them, they could become targets. But on the other hand...Squall was strong, and Yuffie was getting there too. They could take care of themselves, and wounds healed eventually. But he knew from experience what a sudden loss could do to someone. And he knew what they were like; Yuffie didn't remember Radiant Garden, or her parents. This would be the first big loss in her life. And Squall was probably furious, with nowhere to direct his anger. Isa was half afraid he'd get hurt looking for vengeance. It seemed like something he would do.

"...the next time you're in town, please let them know I'm alive." Of course, they could think Sora was just trying to make them feel better, or had been misled. He'd have to give them a message that would prove it was from him. Something only they would understand.

"...tell them I got a badge of honor protecting my important person, and that I'm damn proud of it. They'll know what I mean."

Sora nodded. "Alright. I'll make sure to tell them the next time I can." He would have done it anyway, as Isa was his friend. But after telling him about Riku... letting Cid and the others know that he was alright was the least he could do.

Sora looked back up at the older man. "But how are you? You were bleeding not too long ago, probably still are... just how badly did you get hurt?"

...that was a good question, actually. Isa started to shrug off his coat.

"...I would actually appreciate if you would take a look. I think I popped some stitches." Isa removed his bloody shirt and unwrapped the bandages. They came off to reveal that his back was flayed open from right shoulder to left hip; the long gash was an angry, inflamed red. Where the stitches had popped, his ribs were visible in the depth of the wound.

"Well? How does it look back there?"

Sora paled at the sight of the injury. Eyes wide, he walked over and stopped a bit behind Isa. "... Oh man. Oh wow. That's... that's _really_ bad. There's bone and... Kingdom Hearts, Isa, how... how are you still standing?" He raised a hand to the gash, stopping just shy of actually _touching _it. Then he pulled his hand back after a moment and swallowed thickly.

"We need to get you to a doctor. Now. Probably yesterday, actually. But now is the next best option."

Axel leaned over to see Isa's wounds- Oh. Kingdom. Hearts.

His face went white. Was that what Isa'd been running around with this whole time?

"A doctor. Yeah. Doctor. Now," he spat as he crawled out of bed, the opposite side this time. He could not look at that wound again.

...wow, those were...not good reactions. Namine had not reacted like that at ALL. Isa craned his head, trying to see it, but it was impossible.

"Is it really that bad?" It didn't FEEL that bad...Did Sora say he could see bone? That...sounded much worse than it felt. But he supposed it couldn't hurt to get it looked at.

"...if you want me to see a doctor, you're going to have to provide one, you know."

It didn't take Sora long to think of one. "Land of the Dragons." He replied quickly. "I spent some time there before I headed back to Hollow Bastion. One of the army doctors could probably try to fix you up." Assuming they weren't busy with a batch of wounded soldiers from yet another clash with the Huns. But it was a chance they'd have to take.

"Come on. The sooner we can get you there, the better." As for how they got there... well. They could take the Gummy ship for all he cared. He wouldn't even object if Axel came along, just so long as they got Isa to that doctor. And the sooner, the better.

Axel groaned, stepping over to the two. "Well, a portal would be the fastest way. We should get a move on, yeah?" He summoned a portal, wrapped an arm around Isa and glanced at Sora.

"You remember how to use these, Roxas?"

"Lea, let go, I can walk on my own," Isa groused. "My coat-"

Sora knelt down and grabbed Isa's coat, tossing it over his shoulders. He didn't know why Isa had it, but that probably wasn't something he'd want to leave behind. "I said to knock off that damn Roxas thing." Sora snapped. He didn't bother to answer Axel's question, instead just walking right into the portal. He hadn't been expecting it to be so _cold_. Sora ignored it, and stepped from the cold corridor to the only _slightly_ warmer Land of Dragons.

Axel wouldn't let Isa go long enough to shove his arms through the sleeves of his coat. Isa could have shoved the redhead off, but he didn't want to hurt him worse by accident. Instead, he held the front shut as best he could while it was half-draping over the Nobody's arm. The tendrils of cold seeping in were unpleasant, but not terrible. Unbeknownst to Isa, his eyes had taken on a faint yellowish glow, which vanished as soon as they exited the portal and stepped back into a world of light.

The portal had landed in the current army camp, so it didn't take long for Sora to find Shang. Sora bolted towards him and had to skid to a stop to avoid colliding with him. Shang turned around, raising an eyebrow at the boy.

"Shang! I need to ask you a favor. I need a doctor- not for me, for a friend." he hurriedly explained, "He's been hurt really badly, even though he isn't acting like it."

"Your friend is hurt?" Shang looked up at the two behind Sora and his scowl deepened. Those black coats-...well, one man was already discarding his, and he was bare-chested? He circled around to the back of them, his eyes widening in surprise when he saw the blue-haired man's back. How was this man standing?

"Someone call a medic!" he shouted to a gaggle of his troops.

Well this place was absurdly freezing, not exactly Axel's favorite weather but Isa needed treatment asap. He clung to his side, despite Isa's protests. But then an older man, presumably the medic, came out and started shouting, pulling Isa away from the Nobody. Axel fell back, hovering around to avoid seeing the man's wounds. He didn't want to remind himself of what they'd been through because of hi- because of the Organization.

"If you uh, need anything let me know. I'll help if I can but," he winced again, just thinking about it. "This isn't really my area of uh, yeah..." Axel trailed off as he realized the medic was completely ignoring him, instead shoving and bullying Isa towards the medical tent.

"I'm fine," Isa protested automatically, "you don't need to-"

"Quiet, you!" the medic snapped as they disappeared into the tent, "Not another word!"

Sora gave his own sigh of relief as Isa was ushered into the medical tent. Finally, that crazy man could get patched up before he hurt himself even more. Or _actually_ died. At that moment, another portal opened nearby. Sora tensed, but instead of a black-coated figure, a slight blonde girl in a white dress hurried out. She breathed her own sigh of relief as she saw Isa entering the medical tent. Namine approached Sora and Axel where they stood.

She turned to smile at Sora first. "...Hello Sora, Roxas. It's good to see you both."

"Um... both?" Sora blinked in confusion. What was this girl talking about? _Both?_ And just who was she? She was vaguely familiar, but Sora was positive that he hadn't seen her before.

"Do I know you? It feels like I should, but..."

Namine tilted her head, smiling. "...well, she and Roxas know me. So I would seem familiar regardless. My name is Namine. I'm a friend of Isa and Axel." And Riku, but Riku would probably prefer she not say anything about that. "I wanted to make sure he gets back alright. He can't portal on his own, after all."

Well that really wasn't explanatory. Everything this Namine said was really just making Sora more and more confused about what she meant. "Wait, she? She who?"

Namine just smiled mysteriously at Sora, then turned to Axel. From the worry on his face, it was clear he'd gotten his act together.

"So you made up?" Namine said. "I'm glad."

Axel was surprised to see her, but...he guessed she had to check up after all the craziness that morning.

"Yeah, something like that. He's in pretty bad shape from all this fighting, it's being taken care of though. I'll make sure he gets back alright, that's for damn sure," he sighed, trying not to make it too obvious how much he had been worrying about the whole ordeal. "Namine, I'm sorry about the other day. I was being reckless-" he cut himself off, he didn't know what else to say without delving into the whole betrayal scheme again. But Namine just shook her head at Axel's apology.

"Things worked out in the end. That's what's important. But I came because you don't know where we've been staying. Isa wanted to go home, so we did; but to the home Sora knows him from, but the Organization doesn't know about." She gave Sora a significant look, one that said not to say it aloud but that she thought he should know where she meant. "I thought he might not be in a position to tell you himself after the doctor is through with him."

"Huh, some place the Organization doesn't know about? Where's that?" Axel asked, clearly not picking up on Namine's hints. "Roxas, you know what she's talkin' about, right?"

But before Sora could respond, the medic came storming out of the tent. He zeroed in on the Keybearer, grabbing his hand and slapping a bottle into it.

"Keep. Him. _Sedated,_" the medic growled. "He's lucky to be alive; I can't even understand how he ISN'T dead, let alone crippled. Half the muscles in his back are severed, and it looks like he's actually been _fighting_ with it like that. DO NOT LET HIM MOVE." The doctor jabbed a finger at Sora. "He will kill or cripple himself. Tie him down when you have to let the sedatives wear off, whatever you have to do to keep him still. It's clear he won't on his own."

Somehow, one furious doctor with a bottle and a jab-happy finger was more frightening then the loads of Heartless and Nobodies he had been fighting. "Yessir," Sora replied hurriedly in an attempt to reassure him. "We'll do what we can. We'll make sure he stays still."

Axel had to try not to burst out in laughter. Whoa whoa whoa, _sedatives? _Of course they'd have to tie him down to keep him still. Stubborn as always, Isa.

"I'll do what I can too, granted he doesn't even listen to _me_." Axel _was_ relieved, though. This had all worked out well and _hopefully_ Isa would finally be healed in due time.

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Some time late in the afternoon, Sora returned to Hollow Bastion. As per usual, he walked in right through the front door of Cid's house without knocking. Not loudly, throwing the door open and what not, but he didn't bother to knock this time. He had thought over how he was going to tell them about Isa before he let himself in, so all he had to do was wait for a lull in the conversation.

Not that there'd been much conversation in the house to start with. Yuffie was just sitting at the table, staring into space, while Aerith busied herself with making another pot of tea (as she had been doing since morning). Cid was tinkering with some gummi part or other to keep his mind off of things. Leon, though, had been glued to the computer all day, not even taking breaks as he tried to decrypt the Apprentices' notes. Everyone looked up as Sora entered the room, although Leon went right back to his work. Until-

"I have some news and a message. From Isa."

Leon stopped dead. The rest of the family turned to look at Sora, but Leon just kept staring at his keyboard.

A message from-...? Then he was- ...no. It couldn't be. Isa must have just left something behind, written something- Leon wouldn't get his hopes up. He wouldn't. But-

"He's alive, and more or less in one piece." Sora continued. "He got hurt, but he'll live. Isa's in hiding from the Organization right now, though, which is why he hasn't been able to get in touch. And he wanted me to pass on a message the next time I was in town. He says that he got a badge of honor protecting his important person, and that he's proud of it." Sora couldn't help but shrug there. "He said you'd know what he means."

Aerith's face suddenly twisted up. She pressed a hand to her mouth and stood, hastily removing herself from the room with a quickly muttered 'excuse me'. Cid let out a brief, relieved chuckle, smirking softly.

"...That stupid kid. How bad's he hurt?"

At the same time, Yuffie leapt up to accost Sora, crying again. "H-he's okay! Where is he? C-can we go see him!"

But Leon stayed sitting exactly as he was, staring through his keyboard. A badge of honor...Leon reached to touch the scar on his face. There was no way Sora would know about that. The message really must have come from Isa. That meant his brother was...

Sora reeled back from Yuffie's assault. With the girl demanding his attention so aggressively, Sora decided to address her question first.

"I think I know where he's staying right now," Sora replied. "But I'm not sure that you guys can see him just yet. Since he_ is _in hiding." Another look at Yuffie's face had him scrambling for something encouraging to say. "But I can ask Isa if he thinks it'd be safe when I see him again. And he was asking after you, once he knew that you thought he was dead. He wanted to know if you guys were alright."

Then, Sora turned to answer Cid. "Um, pretty badly hurt. But he didn't realize it for a while. We got him medical attention, though, so like I said he'll be fine."

Leon suddenly whipped around in his chair. "...what about Axel, then? Isa got hurt protecting him? But I heard what he said. I saw him go off with those two!"

The question caught Sora a bit off guard. He'd been expecting to be asked about Axel's involvement, but... he hadn't really come up with anything to say in reply. That was the one thing he didn't know how to answer. His personal opinion that all Nobodies were monsters to be killed was pitched against his loyalty to his friends and their choices. Isa's choice to stay with Axel, and not only accept his apology but believe him and his apparent 'feelings,' was included in that loyalty.

Sora hesitated a little while longer. "That... part of that was an accident. They had a plan to make the Organization think Isa was dead so they'd stop going after him and wouldn't attack you guys; we were never supposed to hear that. The rest is..."

Should he tell them about how Axel had intended to betray Isa? How he _had_, then realized that he couldn't go through with it when it was almost too late? ... No. No, he shouldn't. That was between him and Axel, and Isa could tell his family himself. In person. "...something I don't think I should answer. It's really something that Isa should probably tell you. Not me."

Leon glared at Sora in silence for a few moments, then turned his face aside with a light snort. Some part of him refused to believe this. Sora must have been misinformed, that part of him said; or it was a trick, or something. Something that would make it hurt less if Isa never came home. But then Leon glanced back at the files on his computer screen, frowning softly.

He had to trust in his brother. They'd had difficult times before, but Isa had always come through for them. Leon had to trust that he would now. And Leon couldn't let _him_ down, either. The brunette placed his hands back on the keyboard. Isa needed these files. So Leon would have them ready for him when he came home.

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Isa blinked his eyes open slowly. He felt so groggy and disoriented; what...?

How did he get back to his own room in Traverse Town? Last he clearly remembered, Sora and Lea had carted him to a snowy mountain of some sort, where a doctor had bullied him into a tent and forced something down his throat, and then-

...how long had he been out? Isa slid out of the bed, wobbling to his feet. He felt off-kilter, but not particularly weak. Was his wound really that bad? He hobbled over to his closet to check the mirror on the back of the door. He pulled his shirt off, turning so his back was to the mirror. His eyes widened when he saw his back; instead of a wound, there was a long, raised scar. How long had he been unconscious?

Something caught Isa's eye, and he leaned towards the mirror to peer at his face. Were his eyes...always that color? He thought he remembered them being a little less teal. Maybe it was just the lighti-

"Man, of course the second I leave is when you wake up!" Isa jumped at the sound of Axel's voice. His attention immediately snapped to the redhead, who just laughed at his reaction.

"How're you feeling? Looks like you've finally healed up," Axel walked over, taking a look at the long scar running across Isa's back.

"Lea. What happened?" Isa demanded. "How long was I unconscious?"

Isa tried to think back. He felt like he had vague recollections of consciousness, of babbled conversations and...but he felt like they had been dreams. Maybe, though, they hadn't been? But Axel just laughed, the poor guy. He put his hand on Isa's shoulder, trying not to grin too much. He was just happy Isa was doing okay, his reaction wasn't hilarious or anything. Nope.

"Yeah, nice to see you too, Isa. You've been out uh, well lesse... I'd say about three weeks now."

"Three _weeks?" _Isa looked flabbergasted. His mouth worked, as if he was trying to say more, but absolutely no sound was coming out of him.

"Well, yeah!" Axel laughed. "You were pretty messed up, so the doctor had to sedate yah. Unsurprising, 'cuz yer so stubborn, y'know." He moved his arms around Isa, pulling him into a hug. "Glad to see you're doing better though, you had me worried," Yeah, worried. Whoa. He let go, turning Isa around to check out his scar again. The doctor was right, how the hell was he still alive? Guess that didn't matter now, though.

"By the way, you sure do think about me a lot huh. You wouldn't shut up about me," Axel jabbed him lightly, a huge grin plastered on his face. "_Oh Lea~_"

It took Isa all the way up to that point to get over his shock; then his face shifted to one of anger. "You kept me _sedated?_" How could he? Or _they,_ Isa guessed. He supposed he wouldn't put it past Sora. OR Lea. And Riku and Namine must have been involved too. "There is no way it was bad enough to nee-"

Then what Axel said registered, and Isa stiffened. He turned away from the redhead in acute embarrassment. Axel just laughed again, this was too good.

"Well of course, what were you gonna do? Fight off the Organization with THIS on your back? Yeah, not if we had any say. Which we did, cuz you were out cold!" Axel just kept laughing, a moment where Isa didn't have any control- now _that_ was how to _really _tick him off!

"Yeah, y'know, you said a lot of other stuff, too. But jeez, it was Lea this, Lea that. I even think you dropped the L word a few times, how _sweet_, you've got a gushy soft side under that angry, stubborn exterior," Axel then proceeded to make an 'Isa' face but it ended up making him burst out in more laughter. Judging by Isa's silence he was either thoroughly embarrassed or ready to punch him in the face. But Axel was too happy to care.

Isa tensed up with embarrassment. Lea, that fucker. He was enjoying this, hnngh. But Isa couldn't even lie to himself; he was happy, because this was _his_ Lea. This smiling, laughing man who teased him mercilessly, _this_ was the person he'd waited so long to see. He was having a hard time being angry about being sedated for so long, even if it meant he was so far behind on his plans now. Still, he had a show to put on.

"It wasn't that bad." Isa grumbled. "I could still save your sorry ass just fine with it."

It was hard for Axel to take him seriously when he was clearly embarrassed, but trying to act tough. Yeah, this was the Isa he missed. The past three weeks gave Axel plenty of time to think, and plenty of time to realize that he did want to stick around. All that 'but I'm a Nobody blah blah, I'm not supposed to-' was shoved aside, at least for now. This was where he wanted to be, even if it didn't make much sense. He was just so happy Isa was up and still _breathing._

"Oh yeah? You didn't look too great to me, loser. Not that you'd listen to me anyway," Axel sighed, before pulling Isa into a hug again. "I guess I do owe you, huh? If it weren't for you, well... I'm pretty sure Sora wasn't going to give a second thought to killing some jackass traitor Nobody. But, well, guess I can't blame him. Well, the kid hasn't tried to kill me since, in case yer wondering. In fact, he's been pretty busy while you were asleep, but y'know. We can catch up on that later."

A grin worked it's way onto Axel's face again, before he turned to the door that was still ajar. He couldn't just will it closed, but he was already here with Isa and...

Three weeks of worrying about this idiot that saved his life, yeah, that really tested his nerves.

"You don't owe me anything," Isa started to say. "Of course I would-"

Suddenly Lea was all over him. Isa stiffened; he hadn't been expecting that at all. He had just woken up and- after everything that had- and the door was open and- Isa found himself stepping back.

Axel blinked for a moment, before stepping back too. He didn't mean to react that way...okay that was a lie. He totally meant to react that way, but he didn't expect that from Isa. He frowned a bit, before raising a hand to point at the door.

"I uh, I'm gonna go check on the food, I was cooking. It's probably burning. Do you like burnt food? Me either, I guess it's an acquired taste," he started towards the door. Fuck, what was he thinking?

"Wait." Isa's hand snapped out to catch his wrist gently. "Wait..."

Axel stopped in his place. Okay, he had to admit he wasn't really cooking anything. There wasn't much of anything in the house. It was just a terrible excuse to get the hell out of there, and apparently Isa wouldn't have it.

He stood for a moment, keeping his eyes glued to the floor. Axel didn't want to admit it, but the past few weeks made him realize a lot about himself. How he worried over this man, and even after he betrayed him he felt like he had to make things right. And even though he brought a lot of trouble in with him, he couldn't actually say he regretted sticking behind that day... Yeah, a lot of realizations that were sort of overwhelming. It'd be ridiculous to go on thinking he was deceiving himself, but it still didn't make much sense. This was how he remembered Lea feeling, so he kept his eyes away from Isa. It was all too much to handle, especially now that Isa was awake. Soon his plans would start up and they'd be in danger again. Axel turned back around, letting Isa keep his grip on his wrist. He had a lot to say and words just wouldn't come out; he guessed that explained his actions before. Something about this silence though, Axel could only assume Isa wasn't really mad at him.

Isa frowned, looking at the floor between them. He wasn't sure why he'd backed off. It had been...too sudden, maybe? He hadn't had a real chance to process everything, and then apparently he'd been out for three weeks, and then this- he wasn't sure how he should feel. But he knew he didn't want Lea to go. Isa's scar wrinkled as he thought, but he didn't know-

"Don't go. Please." Isa's eyes were still on the floor, his hand still gripping Lea's wrist. He took a deep breath, then let it out slowly.

"...I'm sorry. I thought...I knew what my life was going to be." Isa traced the pattern in the floor with his eyes. He knew it by heart. He'd become an adult living in this house, but...he hadn't really been living. He'd just been going through the motions, aimlessly drifting through his life. "...I'd accepted it. But then you came back into my life as suddenly and disruptingly as you left, and...nothing is the same anymore. It was...very confusing, and distressing. I feel like I should be terrified. But...when I hear your laugh, or see your smile..." Isa lifted his eyes to meet the redhead's, his voice cracking on the last word of his sentence, "...it feels like coming _home_." Not to a place, but to a time, when life had been simple and easy, and they had been innocent.

"...everyone keeps trying to warn me that this is dangerous. And maybe it is. But...I am not the least bit afraid." Isa frowned deeply. "Everything with the Heartless, Darkness, the Organization...I want to pretend they never existed. They'll still be there tomorrow. But just for today..." Isa squeezed Lea's wrist gently, his face pleading despite himself. "...just for today...can't things just be simple between us?"

...Axel was still convinced he was _doomed_ before he ran into Isa. Roxas leaving the Organization, that was enough to rip him apart, even though he wasn't supposed to feel _anything._ And it hadn't made much sense, but now he wasn't really sure if he cared.

But before he could get a grip... Isa came into his life again, oh the irony of it all. What Axel'd had to go through to kill off his loneliness. He found a friend in Roxas, and once he left it led him right back to his past. Isa. But Isa could feel love, and that just made Axel... angry? He was jealous but, how could he feel that way if he didn't have a heart? He took out all his anger on him, and maybe he couldn't just let go of Roxas for something he wasn't even sure-

Whatever. He was certain now.

"Tell me about it. Look, I wasn't expecting to ever see you again either. And well, I was really okay with the idea at first. I mean- I want to stay here, it's just... I'm not supposed to- it's hard to explain, I'm not supposed to feel... like I want to stay. I just, well, who would believe me? But I don't care, I'll just say it. I want things to be simple again, y'know, like I'm still Lea. Well," he took Isa's hand, placing it up to his chest, "Yeah, that's what it feels like right now. Huh, that's what it feels like? Isn't that weird to say?"

Isa could feel the warmth under his hand, and it almost undid him. He had Lea back. He felt whole.

Isa stepped away from the redhead, walking over to the door. He placed a hand on it and pushed it shut gently, letting his hand rest there for a moment. Then, he turned towards the redhead, blue eyes meeting green.

"...I believe you. When have I ever called you anything but Lea?"

Axel didn't have an answer to that. Isa did have faith in him, but- oh, he still felt guilty for how stupid he was. For ever doubting that for a second.

He wasn't going to think about it, not right now. Isa was right here, and he didn't have to lie to himself anymore. He put his arms around the blue haired man, pulling him in and kissing him on his scar.

He was here, alive, and he wasn't leaving.

Isa closed his eyes and leaned into Lea's kiss for a moment. Then, he decided he had no scar at all. Not today. So he leaned up and caught Lea's lips, laced his fingers into his red hair. He paused to pull his own hair back, using a strand of it to secure it off his neck. Just for today, it was bothersome. And so was that coat; it would have to go. Isa unclipped the chain and tugged on the zipper, pushing the coat back off the redhead's shoulders. There was no Organization, there was just Isa and Lea, and it was simple and easy and good.

Axel let his coat drop to the floor, moving his arms over Isa's shoulders. He couldn't stop grinning into the kiss. Man, what stupid kids they were. What stupid men they became.

The redhead kicked his coat away, dragging Isa over. Well, he thought he'd land on the bed but he tripped over the coat he'd just kicked, toppling over on the floor and dragging the other with him. He blinked for a moment, before bursting out in laughter again. Axel- No, Lea- yeah. Lea, terribly nervous and with the man he loved, giggling like an idiot, his arms still wrapped around Isa. This was good, he wouldn't mind if things stayed like this.

When they hit the ground, Isa burst out laughing, too. He felt a knot he hadn't even known was there loosening in his chest. He threw his head back and let the laughter wash over him. Just for right now, he could be a careless, idiot teenager again.

When the laughter died down, Isa leaned forward to press his lips to Lea's, grinning through the kiss. Then he rolled so he was leaning over the redhead, and kissed him again.

They were together, and everything was alright. Just for today.


	12. Gearing Up

A/N: And here's another chapter, this time in a timely manner! Also, if you're interested and haven't noticed, there are links to illustrations for this fic linked in my profile by chapter.

Enjoy!

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Isa didn't think he'd ever been as content as he was at this moment. Usually he hated being a layabout, but with Lea beside him, lazing in bed for hours didn't seem so bad. By now, though, it had been quite a long while of not moving, and his back felt stiff and cramped. He would have to get up and stretch.

Isa disentangled himself from the redhead beside him. He sat on the edge of the bed, his back to his companion, reaching forward to grasp his toes and stretch out his back.

He'd had a lot of time to think while laying around. This...was wonderful. He never wanted this to end. But the Organization was still out there; until they were gone, he and Lea would never be safe. And he had lost three whole weeks that he could have been working to solve this problem. Isa sighed, letting go of his toes and resting his elbows on his knees. Well, he'd just have to get an early start tomorrow. Tonight he would let himself relax. Although it would be good to get filled in on what had gone on while he was asleep.

"...is Riku still with our little group?" Isa asked Lea without turning to face him. The blue-haired man reached forward to stretch again. "I'll need to start training first thing in the morning, if I want to be a match for your Organization."

Yeeeeah this was good. Like when they were stupid kids, spending all day getting in trouble, and the afternoons just lazing in the grass... Axel had ended up tangled with Isa, an arm wrapped around his chest, just thinking. Daydreaming. When was the last time he'd done this?

But Isa moved over to the edge of the bed and started on about Riku. Oh great, Axel knew this wasn't going to last long _but does this guy ever take a break_. He sat up, a frown on his face as he reached out for Isa- failing, and flopping over face first on the bed. He turned himself over, laying next to Isa as he continued stretching.

"Jeez, right to business as usual. Riku, yeah he's still with us. He keeps asking about you, but that kid is kinda weird. Wouldn't tell me anything, huh."

"Did he? Good, then he's probably still willing to train me." Isa turned to smirk at Lea. Unbeknownst to him, though, there was something wrong with his eyes. It hadn't been noticeable in daylight, but in the dark of the night, his eyes were glowing a soft yellow, the color overlayed like a film over the light blue that was his natural color.

But Axel just rolled his eyes. It was clear he was oblivious to Isa's intentions, and to the change in his eyes, too. The redhead hadn't exactly had time to notice with all the insanity going on as of late.

"C'mon, Isa. I don't want to think about that right now." He rolled over, wrapping his arms around Isa's waist. Honestly, Axel could stand to train a bit himself. He wasn't exactly impressive on the battlefield, ever since Roxas left. But he'd worry about that some other time.

Isa sighed, letting Lea pull him back down onto the bed.

"I know. But I can't help it. I want to get all of this resolved as quickly as possible." He frowned, tucking a bit of Lea's hair back behind his ear. "I can't sit still, knowing they're out there. We're lucky they haven't found this place already."

The most worrisome part for Isa was the idea that he couldn't get Lea away if something happened and the redhead was hurt. He didn't like relying on others to get him from point A to point B, anyway. He supposed a gummi ship would do the job but...gummi ships were less convenient than what he had in mind.

"I want to hurry up and learn to form those portals, just in case."

Learn how to make portals? How the hell did he intend on doing that- Oh damnit, now Axel was worrying again. He wouldn't have that, not today. He pushed himself over the blue-haired man, pressing his lips to Isa's.

They'd talk about 'the plan' in the morning.

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The morning (or what passed for it in Traverse Town) came far too soon, although Isa felt completely refreshed after a night of natural, unsedated sleep. Still, it was time to get serious. They had no more time for lazing around.

Isa slipped out of bed and started digging around in the closet. He was glad they had left so much behind when the family had moved to Hollow Bastion, and also that he more-or-less hadn't changed clothing size in the past year. He glanced back at the bed once he was dressed, and smirked. Lea still looked as adorable now when he was sleepy as he had when they were young. Isa couldn't help himself; he leaned over and pressed a kiss to the redhead's temple.

Isa straightened up and glanced around the room, looking for his claymore. Ah, there it was, leaning against the wall next to where that coat was hanging. Isa scowled, moving over to look at the coat.

...protection against Darkness, huh?

After a long moment, Isa took the coat and shrugged it on, zipping it up. It was distasteful, but he would just have to deal.

Axel wasn't budging. He knew what today meant. He lay there for a moment, after feeling Isa's lips on his temple. When he finally decided to open his eyes, he found the bluehaired man in a black coat, looking mildly irritated.

"Looks good on you," Axel mumbled, pushing himself off the side of the bed. "So what's the agenda today, huh?"

"Hmph." Isa grumbled. "I hate wearing it, but it's necessary if it will protect me while I'm learning to control the Darkness. Still, having to look like a member of that Organization..." he trailed off in irritation. It really was distasteful.

Isa glanced back at the redhead. "First on the agenda is seeing if Riku is about. I want to get to learning to portal straight away."

"Eh, you get used to it. Looking like a 'bad guy' I mean..." Axel trailed off, before Isa caught his attention again. "Wait a second, you lost me. What's with this whole Darkness thing, I mean I thought like, well, you need the Darkness in order to control it. Am I missing something, Isa?"

Isa blinked. Well, then. Guess it fell to him to explain. "I suppose they didn't tell you, then."

Isa sat back down on the side of the bed next to Lea. "...yes, you need the Darkness in order to control it. Loathe as I am to believe it, it would seem I already have that requirement fulfilled." Isa pointed to his scar then. "Riku seems to think I was tainted when I received this. Evidently I've been augmenting myself with the Darkness ever since. But," Isa shrugged then, gesturing over his shoulder to his back, "apparently this wound would have killed me without it. So I suppose it has its uses."

Axel wasn't sure how to react. Granted, it explained how Isa had survived after all the injuries he had. He just let out a sigh; whether he liked it or not they had a long road ahead of them before they could stop fighting. He needed to kill off the thoughts of 'this is all my fault' before they sent him into another fit of anger. Axel put an arm around Isa, while lowering his head to hide the pained look on his face.

"Be careful, you idiot."

Isa frowned. He didn't like worrying Lea. He reached a hand up to ruffle the red spikes gently.

"I'll be alright. After all, apparently I've had this with me all this time, and ignoring it won't make it go away." He gently pushed Lea's head back and forth for a moment affectionately. "It's better to learn to control it, don't you think? And then I'll be better prepared to protect you."

Axel looked up with a frown, "Protect me?" But he quickly burst out into laughter.

"Oh man, I guess I better shape up too. I wasn't exactly carrying my own weight during those fights. Looks like I lost my touch, heh."

No Axel, Isa would not believe for a second that you could ever hold your own in a fight. Try again.

Isa laughed then, ruffling the redhead's hair one last time before standing up.

"Right. Well, we'd better get a move on, then. Get dressed and let's have something to eat. I'm starving and I want to catch up with everyone."

Isa stood, then proceeded out to the kitchen in the hopes of finding both food and the other two members of their party. He wondered if they were even aware he was awake?

Riku was leaning against the table and nursing a cup of coffee when he came into the room. The three weeks Isa had been out like a light for had been relatively calm. For them at least. For the rest of a small cluster of worlds, it had been chaotic. He looked up from his coffee when Isa entered.

"You're awake. I was wondering when you were going to get up and about." Now, hopefully Isa wasn't too cross about being kept sedated for three weeks. It would be an unfortunate start to the day if he was.

But the first thing out of Isa's mouth was "Is there more of that?"

Riku nodded toward the pot on the stove, and Isa made a beeline for it. Only once he had himself a good cup of coffee did he start talking. He crossed his arms, his free hand laid on the bicep of the arm that held his coffee, and leaned against the counter while he talked.

"...I understand I've been checked out for quite a while. I expect to be filled in on everything that I've missed. I also expect to begin learning to use the Darkness as soon as you are able."

Isa paused. Well, he ought to have full disclosure at the get-go. "...I told Sora you're alive. He was very relieved to hear it. No more than that, though; the rest is up to you."

With a ghost of a frown, Riku returned to staring into his coffee at that news. "He would have found out sooner or later." At least now Sora wouldn't be worrying. But he _would _be trying harder then ever to try and find him. Riku sighed, then looked back up at Isa. "... Thank you for not telling him more.

"While you've been out, Sora has been moving through the worlds almost as fast as he can find them. As a result, the Organization has been too busy dealing with him to try to find us." He had been keeping an eye on both of them whenever he wasn't needed here. It always paid to be up-to-date, though one step ahead was better. "As for learning to control and use your Darkness, we can start as soon as you're ready." It would be interesting, trying to teach Isa how to use the Darkness. He hadn't really been _taught_ what to do so much as he had picked up on it. Maleficent and Ansem had mostly just nudged Riku in the right direction, letting him overuse the Darkness to his heart's content.

Isa just nodded to Riku. Dealing with Sora was Riku's affair; and Isa could respect that so long as it didn't hurt his young friend unnecessarily. It looked like Sora had quickly gotten back on track once he'd learned both Isa and Riku were fine. Good; it kept the boy busy and kept the Organization off of their backs. As for the rest...Isa set his coffee down on the counter.

""Immediately" seems like a good time to start, then. Shall we start with creating portals, or with summoning weapons?"

"You won't be able to summon your claymore, so we'll work on portals. " Riku took one last sip of his coffee before setting it on the table. "Let's head outside. There'll be more room for us to work." He didn't wait for a reply before he straightened and left the kitchen, heading outside.

Isa picked up his claymore, following immediately after Riku. Lea would find them eventually if he felt like it, but it might be better for the redhead to be out of the line of fire anyway. Isa wasn't sure what this work would entail. He frowned as he stepped outside, unaware of the soft golden glow his eyes took on in the eternal night of Traverse Town. "Why would I not be able to summon my weapon? I've seen you do it, and you aren't a Nobody either."

"Nobodies can summon their weapons because they, the Nobodies, are pure Darkness. Their weapons are simply extensions of themselves that they can summon at will." He explained. "I can summon mine because, for however it looks to the contrary, it's a Keyblade." One as tainted and twisted from the concept as its wielder, but a Keyblade all the same. "Summoning comes with the territory."

Riku hadn't been looking at Isa as he had talked, distracted thinking about how they were going to do this as he was. But once he had finished his explanation and had his mental notes in order, he glanced over at Isa. Then he froze before he could say anything else. Isa froze too in response.

Riku just stared at him for a moment. Or more specifically, at his glowing eyes. "... Isa. Your eyes are glowing gold." He said slowly, still fixed on the sight. Gold wasn't good. Gold meant the Darkness was tightening its grip.

Isa reached up to touch one of his eyes.

"...are they really?" Isa tipped his claymore to look into a reflective part of it. Sure enough, there was a faint glow to his eyes. That was...bizarre, to say the least. Was this why he'd felt like his eyes were a little greener? "...what does that mean?"

"It means the Darkness has strengthened its hold." Riku started after a moment's hesitation. There was no way to put this delicately. "After enough time, using the Darkness starts to physically affect a person. Gold eyes, pointed ears- though it takes a lot of Darkness for that to happen."

Riku frowned and took one last look at the glow before looking away. "Nothing we can do but keep an eye on it. For right now it's only a glow. But if your eyes actually start to turn gold, then it's time to start worrying." And even when that eventually happened, there really wasn't anything they could do.

Isa's scowl deepened. "When I went through the portal unprotected, I had...some very strange physical symptoms." He recalled the steaming scar, the vomiting, the strange drifting sensation. "Could it stem from that? And what, exactly, are the risks aside from cosmetic changes?" If his eyes turned gold, what exactly did that mean? Riku said that was time to start worrying; about what, though? Riku had evidently undergone a full, irreversible, physical transformation, but he seemed otherwise fine. But then, evidently he had a keyblade.

Well, hopefully the risks wouldn't outweigh the ability to face the Organization.

Whether or not this was a result from the portal, Riku didn't know. "I'm really not sure. It could be that. On the other hand, you've been living with this Darkness for upward of ten years." That could easily be the reason. Or it could be a combination of the two; He just didn't know.

"There isn't only a physical change. For me, at least, there was an attitude change. Doing things I wouldn't normally do, saying things I wouldn't say if I was myself." Though that had been in part because of Ansem. But taunting Sora and borderline-insulting him... that had been all Riku. "To be quite honest, I'd have preferred gold eyes or elf ears over the attitude.

"As for the risks, well..." Riku sighed. "You can't truly control the Darkness. Not matter how careful you are, no matter how you look or act as a result of using it, it _will_ consume your heart, given enough time. And the more you use it, the faster it'll happen. It happened to Maleficent. It'll happen to us."

Isa scowled. An attitude change? Well...

"I've already undergone a personality change. So I suppose I don't need to worry further about that." At least, he hoped. But his personality had almost completely changed after he had struck his head and gotten his scar; he'd never been so volatile, nor so melancholy, before the Darkness.

Isa looked Riku in the eye determinedly. "I am willing to accept the risks if it means destroying the Organization. As long as they still exist, our time is limited anyway. If I have to use the Darkness to eliminate that threat, so be it."

Well, Riku'd told Isa the risks involved with using the Darkness. If he decided to continue manipulating it to his advantage, that was his choice. Riku had warned him about what could happen. All he could do now was make sure Isa had his Darkness under control.

Riku held Isa's gaze for a moment, then nodded. "Alright. Then let's get started."

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Axel finally stumbled out of the bedroom, dressed and ready to scavenge for food in the kitchen. He leaned his head out of the doorway; who knew what kind of conversation he might be interrupting? Oh, nobody was in the kitchen? But he just heard them not too long ago.

The snack hunt could wait, Axel was curious now. He heard Isa's voice from outside, something about... darkness? He moved to the doorway, leaning in to hear the conversation outside.

Isa had been living with this for how long now? Axel let out a heavy sigh. It's not as if he'd be able to justify why Isa _shouldn't _be doing this, but he still couldn't help but feel... like this wouldn't end well.

He probably shouldn't listen in anymore. He stuck by the door frame anyway, suddenly finding himself with a lot on his mind.

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A dark portal opened in an alley of Hollow Bastion, near Cid's house. Two men clad in black stepped out of it; one with red hair, and one with blue. It had been nearly two months since Isa had last seen his home; he had been running from the Organization for a few days, then he had been unconscious for three weeks. Added to that the few weeks he had spent training; Riku had not felt him ready to handle his darkness even after those weeks, but special circumstances had forced them to move.

Now, he and Lea had come to Hollow Bastion seeking Sora. Isa took a deep breath; he had missed the smell of the air here in his home world, even if now it was tainted with dust and Darkness. Actually, he had just been homesick in general. There were serious matters to attend to, but Isa would be lying if he said he wasn't looking forward to seeing his family, if only briefly.

"Come on." He gestured to Lea to follow him. "We'd best be-"

Isa stopped mid-stride as a pillar of light shot up into the sky from the direction of the castle. He tilted his head back to look at it. What- Flecks of light were falling like embers from the sky. He held his hand out to catch one, and in that moment he could see Radiant Garden as it had been in his childhood; instead of crumbling walls and exposed pipes, he could see shining marble, bright flowers, hear the sound of running water. The vision faded with the ember, and Isa shut his eyes, taking a shuddering breath. He smiled then, turning to his companion.

"...can you see it, Lea?" He held his hand out to catch another ember.

Axel cupped his hands in Isa's, peering into the ember. Yeah, memories of better days. Days Axel had spent so much time trying to forget. Days Lea would give anything to return to.

Isa saw the look on Lea's face. He thought he knew what the redhead was thinking; probably the same thing he himself was.

"...We'll have days like that again," he assured him.

The redhead shifted his gaze, a pained expression on his face as he chased the falling embers with his eyes. He had faith in Isa; the last few weeks proved that to him. He was more determined than ever to take down the Organization, but... he couldn't help but worry. Oh well, now wasn't the time for that. His fingers slipped through Isa's, lightly tugging him towards the pathway ahead of them.

"C'mon, can't keep them waiting any longer," Axel put on a grin, tugging a bit harder this time. Honestly, the Nobody wasn't looking forward to seeing them again after his previous mishaps. At least Isa wasn't on the verge of death this time...

Isa nodded. "...indeed." He didn't want to keep his family waiting any longer, either. He had tried, while he was training, not to think about how much he missed them, but now that he was within a few yards of home, he couldn't deny he was desperate to see them. Were they alright? Isa'd had no news of the littles since he'd asked Sora to let them know he was alive. What if they hadn't gotten the message? ...well, no use worrying about it now.

He rounded the corner, and there it was. Home. Cid was standing out in front, and he startled and shouted.

"Isa!" He slapped a hand to the top of his head. "Well I'll be damned, you're alright!"

Cid glanced at Axel momentarily, then immediately started towards Isa, pounding him on the back and ushering him towards the house.

"C'mon inside, boy! Sit down, sit down!"

Isa glanced back at the redhead, keeping a tight grip on his hand while Cid guided them inside. The older man moved to the console the minute Isa was inside the house, pressing the button to contact the computer station inside the castle.

"Hey, you lot! Get back here quick as you can; Isa just got home!"

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Yuffie and Aerith both stopped dead as the communicator went off. Isa had come home...?

Sora was a little distracted with checking the computer when Cid called in. As a result he almost missed hearing the news. Almost being the keyword.

He jerked his head up just in time to see Yuffie bolt from the room, not bothering to wait for Aerith and Sora before she rushed off to see Isa for herself. As much as he wanted to follow Yuffie's lead and rush off fast as he could to see Isa, Sora hesitated, then waited for Aerith. The young woman took a moment to press her hands to her face. She took a long, shuddering breath and dropped her hands, turning to smile at Sora.

"...well. Shall we go let Leon know..?"

Sora grinned.

"Yeah, let's go tell him."

Aerith nodded. Her voice was a bit shaky, but she was smiling widely.

"He should be up by the Bailey by now. Let's go meet him."

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Leon, in fact, had parted ways with Cloud a little while previous, and had been on his way towards the computer room when Yuffie went sprinting past. Leon blinked, turning towards her-

"Hey, Yuff-" -but she paid no attention to him and kept running. Was she...she looked ready to cry. Leon's heart jumped up into his throat. Something must have happened. Something must be wrong. He was just about to run after her when-

"Leon!" The young man turned to see Aerith and Sora jogging towards him. There were tears in Aerith's eyes as well. He scowled. "What's wrong? What happened?" But then he realized that Aerith was smiling, so...?

The young woman's smile widened. "Isa's home."

Leon stiffened almost as if struck, his eyes shooting wide open. He looked to Sora for confirmation. "He's-" At the boy's nod, Leon turned and started jogging back as fast as he could without leaving Aerith and Sora behind. Isa was home. That meant he really _was_ alive. He'd had a hard time believing it, even after what Sora had said, without seeing for himself. But now he could prove it to himself. There was only a door in the way, and then-

There was his brother, looking a bit startled, but _alive_ and _whole_ as Yuffie bawled into his shoulder. Leon stood frozen in the doorway. He didn't even notice Axel; he was too focused on the fact that Isa was really here and _alive._ Aerith paused behind him, and then suddenly lunged forward to throw her arms around the blue-haired man too. She was making a sound halfway between a laugh and a sob, and Yuffie was calling Isa names and banging a fist off his chest, and Isa was smiling and hugging both girls, and still Leon couldn't move from his spot.

As they hurried down the stairs, around the corner and into the courtyard, Sora couldn't keep the grin off his face. Now they were finally able to see for themselves that Isa was fine, just like he'd said. He felt a little like he shouldn't intrude, but he just had to say hi. It'd been too long since Sora had last seen Isa to just give them a moment and come back later.

He walked past Leon and stopped not too far from Isa, still grinning from ear to ear. He looked... better. Which wasn't a huge feat, considering that the last time Sora had seen him there was a great gaping wound in his back that should have killed him but hadn't. But both he and Axel looked quite a bit happier than they had before. ...which also didn't take much, considering how things went the last time he'd seen Axel.

"Welcome back!" That was directed at both Isa and Axel. "You're looking better, Isa."

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Isa felt bad for poor Lea, stuck in this awkward situation. Isa had refused Cid's offer of a seat, and so the three of them were just standing around. Isa wished he could have spared Lea the experience of having to be there when he first came home altogether, but circumstances were pressing and the berserker didn't want to risk them getting separated. At least Cid hadn't said anything about what had happened; just that he was glad to see Isa in one piece, and then the room had fallen into silence.

Until Yuffie burst through the door, that was. The girl was good at causing commotion, especially when she burst into tears at the sight of Isa and threw herself at him. Isa actually laughed aloud when he caught her; it was only really hitting him then just _how much_ he had missed everyone.

"You idiot! We were so scared!" Yuffie complained, smacking his chest with her fist. Then Aerith arrived and then both of them were hugging him and crying. And there was Squall, lurking silently in the doorway and looking unsure of what to do. Just for a minute everything felt normal.

Then Sora approached. Isa smirked at first, nodding. "I _feel_ better. I _have_ had nearly two months to recuperate." That thought was sobering, though, and brought Isa back to why they were there. His smile fell, his expression becoming serious. "We aren't here for a social call, though. Lea and I came here to find _you._ Sora, your friend Kairi's been taken by the Organization. We're assaulting the castle today. As soon as you are ready."

The grin disappeared in a flash. 'Your friend Kairi's been taken by the Organzation...'

No, absolutely not. Kairi was suppose to be safe on the Destiny Islands and out of the way of all this. Not off in a castle somewhere where her safety wasn't guaranteed. She was a Princess of Heart. If the Organization had her...

Then he'd just have to go storm that castle by himself, if necessary. Though thankfully it wasn't; He'd have his friends to back him up.

His hands curled into tight fists. "I'm ready _now_. But we can go as soon as you've had a chance to catch up." The Organization would still be there in half an hour, or however long it took. Isa hadn't seen his family in two months, and it wouldn't kill Sora to wait a bit before they went tearing off across the worlds after Kairi. Though to be quite honest he wasn't all that worried about anything that _wasn't_ Kairi right then. Even Riku was shoved onto the back burner in light of this development.

"There'll be plenty of time for catching up after the Organization's been destroyed." Isa frowned, prying Yuffie off of himself. Aerith had let him go as soon as he had started getting serious, but Yuffie did _not _want to release him.

"No way!" She whined. "You just got home! You can't go running off again just like that! It's not fai-"

Isa cut her off gently. "It's not that I want to, it's that I have to. Once I do this I'll be home for good, I promise. Besides, two of our friends went on ahead; we can't leave them hanging." Isa looked at Lea then, jerking his head towards the door to indicate they should get outside to leave. He could see the relief on Lea's face at the prospect. Squall stepped aside to let him out the door, frowning, and Isa glanced back at Sora as he walked, holding out a hand to form a portal outside.

Axel nearly bolted outside. He was feeling anxious, feeling like he didn't quite belong. But that would be fixed soon- he was going to help stop the Organization and this whole mess would be over. Yeah. He was going to do something right, for a change.

He let out a sigh, narrowly dodging eye contact with Isa, and avoiding Sora altogether. The Nobody then stepped into the portal, ready for whatever madness lie ahead of them.

Okay, not really ready, but as ready as he was going to be.

As Isa and Axel left the house, Sora was right on their heels. He started a bit when Isa opened the portal, but didn't make a comment on it. He had _thought_ only Nobodies could do things like that.

"As I said, Riku and Namine have preceded us to the castle. We should hurry." Isa gestured to indicate Sora should enter the portal before him. The boy started _again _at the mention of Riku's name, looking quickly from Isa to the portal.

And then Sora hurried into the portal right after Axel without a second thought, leaving Isa to follow them and close the portal.

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Isa was leaving already? Leon agreed with Yuffie; he didn't want him to go. Judging by the look on Aerith's face, she felt the same. But what could he do? Isa was a grown man, Leon couldn't tell him what to do. But Leon hadn't even gotten to talk to him yet. What if there _wasn't _time afterward? What if Isa never came back?

Leon frowned as he stepped aside to let Isa and the others pass. Isa didn't even glance at him, too focused on the business at hand. Of course he was; that was always how Isa was. Focused on one, primary priority over everything else. Except Leon and the girls had always been that first priority; but now-

That Nobody and Sora disappeared into the swirling Darkness that had risen up from the courtyard like a tear in reality. But as Isa made to enter it, too, a terrible sense of foreboding settled over Leon. The young man felt something like lead sink into the pit of his stomach. It felt like- like if he let Isa walk away now, Leon would never see him again.

He didn't want his big brother to go. He wanted him to turn around, to come home, stay here safe with them. Leon started to move forward, his hand half-stretching out.

"Wait-!"

Isa paused in front of the portal, turning back with a questioning look. Leon opened his mouth to say all of those things, don't go, stay home with us- but no sound came out. He let his half-extended hand close into a fist, dropping slowly to his side. He stared at the ground for a moment, feeling like a stupid ten-year-old again. Leon raised his eyes to meet his brother's confused look, and opened his mouth to speak, but all that came out was-

"-Be careful."

Isa stayed half-turned, watching Leon silently for a long moment. Then he smirked, turning fully towards the brunette and reaching out to ruffle his hair up.

"I will. Take care of things here while I'm gone."

Then Isa turned away and entered the portal, leaving Leon to watch his back disappearing into the swirling darkness.

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Isa closed the portal behind him, still smirking and shaking his head a bit. Squall really was still a kid, after all. Sometimes it was more obvious than others. Isa allowed himself a moment of amusement, but then sobered. There was business at hand.

Isa caught up to the other two in his party, turning to Lea.

"You know the layout of this castle. What is the best way to go about this?" There were four of them, not counting the two noncombatants, and three Organization members. It would be very, very close. Very close.

"As for the entry point into the castle, I'll leave that to you." Lea should be the one to lead them in.

Axel nodded his head, summoning a portal before him. He turned to Isa and Sora, replacing the worried look on his face with a confident grin.

"Let's get this show on the road then," he disappeared into the darkness, stepping out in a familiar room. The Hall of Empty Melodies. His foot steps echoed as he paced the floor, waiting for his comrades to exit the portal as well.

No turning back now.

Isa stepped out into the white room just before Sora, the portal swirling shut behind them. He adjusted his grip on his Claymore, just in case. Then he paused to look around the huge, echoing room. What a barren place. Was the whole castle like this? The thought of Lea spending the better part of ten years in such an empty castle was depressing.

Isa frowned, glancing at the redhead. "How long do you think it will be before we have company?"

-not very long, evidently. As if on cue, Lesser Nobodies started rising from the ground, surrounding the trio. Isa instinctively moved into a defensive crouch, putting his back to his two comrades.

"I suppose I shouldn't have asked."

It seemed whenever there was a fitting opportunity for Xigbar to show up on cue, he was sure to take it. The scene was set, the heroes battling off lesser minions as the boss approached, having been given word by a Dusk that there was company for him to greet. He had to be a decent host, right?

...eh, not really. He didn't have to do jack shit, and this time around he didn't feel like making a show of it. He would get the job over and done with and that would be the end of it. Kingdom Hearts was complete, Isa wasn't needed anymore, Axel was completely useless, the traitorous bastard, and Sora... well, there was no reason to kill him just yet.

The portal opened up on the balcony of the Hall of Empty Melodies, Xigbar quickly pressing down to the ground to get a steady shot. His guns were in sniper mode, his single eye to the scope, and he aimed for a clear shot to the back of Isa's head.

And he fired.

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The room filled with lesser Nobodies, and with a flick of flame Axel had summoned his chakrams and begun fighting. Something just wasn't right though... _they knew _that they were in the castle- what was the deal? The redhead kept his guard up as he fought off the Nobodies, but he didn't expect the next move. A flash of a reflection up on the balcony overhead caught his eye.

Xigbar.

Without a second thought, Axel was standing- limping- doubling over- right before Isa. A resonating sound rang out, forcing time to come to a halt. His vision blurred for a moment, eyeing the Sniper who was now peering over on the balcony above. With his location now compromised, guess he was over playing games.

Axel had to recount what had just happened, fighting his thoughts as they swirled in his head. Right, he'd done something right. This was the right thing to do.

This should be enough now.

The room was spinning, and the Nobody couldn't quite find his bearings anymore. He turned to meet a familiar gaze, shouting- shouting something? It all sounded like white noise for a moment.

He'd taken the bullet, right through his chest. His hand reached up to the wound, fuck- he already felt himself fading away. Fading- fading... Oh, Isa- he could hear his words now. Sora was shouting too.

_I was cheated out of time with you, Isa. I guess I'm going now, though. I saved you, that should make up for all the pain I caused you but... damn..._

"...why am I always the one who has to say goodbye?" Axel muttered, a half smile forced on his face. A bitter laugh escaped him, forcing him to collapse. He looked up, Isa was hunched over him now. How nice of Xigbar to leave him in peace for a moment. Eh.

"Oh here I go, messing up the plan again. Guess you're down another man, think you can make it without me?" he managed, his smile still present. "Heh, of course you can. Oh, and Isa?" he grabbed the bluehaired man's wrist, placing his hand on his chest. "Thank you."

He was fading, fading. Was this really happening? What about Roxas? What about stopping the Organization? What about... his heart?

No no, it didn't matter. Isa was strong. Sora had the keyblade, and his friends to protect. There was no way they could lose. It was a shame things came to this but, hell, he'd gotten a second chance- sure he fucked things up. He lost his heart. He lost Roxas. He nearly killed Isa. But he saved them both! This was right, the right thing to do. He made things right. And well, this was the closest he'd ever been to being _somebody _again.

Somebody worth _remembering_.


	13. Give In

Isa fought. These lesser Nobodies were like nothing; practically as easy as killing Shadows. But there were a lot of them. It could take a while to cut through them all, but nothing they couldn't handle-

Something whizzed past Isa's ear; in the same instant he heard a pained grunt from behind him and felt something wet splash the back of him. An instant later, he heard the crack of a rifle.

What-

Time slowed to a crawl. Isa felt like he was moving through tar as he turned to see Lea doubling over behind him, a big, messy hole in his back. He saw the redhead slowly reaching to touch his chest, his gloved hand coming away covered in blood. Isa heard himself screaming, muffled by the blood pounding in his ears.

No.

No.

Lea.

_**"LEA!"**_

Isa let his claymore drop, forgotten, as he reached towards the redhead. Time was still almost standing still; he saw Lea's broken smile, heard his bitter laugh, and then the redhead was falling, falling, still in slow motion. Isa lunged to catch him, and then Isa was falling too, falling to his knees with the wounded man cradled in his arms. Bits of the Nobody were floating away like smoke on the wind. Isa curled around Lea, covering as much of him as Isa could manage, as if he could somehow hold the redhead together. Even though he knew it was hopeless. Hopeless.

It should have been him.

It should have been Isa.

That bullet had been meant for _him._ But instead, here was Lea, slowly fading to nothing in Isa's arms even as he asked Isa to go on without him. Lea...Lea had too much faith in him. Isa didn't deserve it. Then Lea pressed Isa's hand to his chest.

"Thank you."

And the tears came, running down Isa's cheeks to drip onto Lea's.

"I love you," Isa hissed out, without meaning to. But Lea didn't answer him; Isa didn't know if he could hear or if he was too far gone. He was already like smoke in Isa's arms, barely there, and then an instant later Lea was gone, leaving only wisps of darkness behind.

Isa couldn't breathe. His chest heaved with gasping sobs but he couldn't get any _air._ His empty hands pulled in to his chest, clamping tight into fists. Isa felt like he was going to be ripped apart. And the Darkness rose from within him, surrounding him, beckoning him to give in.

...Well, why shouldn't he? There was no reason to hold back.

Isa curled around himself, letting out a howl of grief and rage. In that instant, a wall of darkness burst out from him like a shockwave, blasting back all the remaining lesser Nobodies. His body was enveloped in a fog of Darkness, which seethed and writhed about him. And the man who rose from that Darkness was a monster.

Isa hunched as he rose, his lips curled back into a snarl. His hair was drifting around his newly-pointed ears, as though caught in some invisible wind. Even his claymore seemed to have become more warped, grasped tightly in his hand. But Isa's eyes were the most frightening change; every bit of white or blue had been erased, replaced by a solid gold that glowed like a lantern through the smoke rising from his scar. Isa turned those lambent yellow eyes on the balcony above him, and let out a snarl of rage.

Isa had always thought his Berserker mode was strong. Now, he knew it was only a pale imitation of the strength he could wield. This was _power_, the likes of which Isa had never felt. It was like he and his claymore were both light as a feather. Power strummed through his muscles, resonating with the beating of his heart. And Isa was conscious. He knew where he was, _who _he was, and what he was there for. But it was almost like dreaming; he felt detached from his actions, an outside observer. Well, that was fine.

He was going to destroy Xigbar. And he was going to remember it.

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When he came to in the Station of Awakening, Roxas knew exactly why he was there. After all, he'd been the one to start it. To force Sora to return to his heart for a battle between the two of them. Roxas had had more than enough of standing on the sidelines while his best friend was slandered, beaten, and eventually _killed_ right in front of him. And so, this was the end-all; whoever walked away from this fight the winner claimed control. And he would rather die than lose to Sora.

Speak of the devil.

A brief flash of light from the opposite end of the platform, and Sora joined him. Rage that he shouldn't be able to feel flared up, and it took all of Roxas' willpower not to beat him to a pulp with his own weapons right there and then.

He could do it. It was so tempting... If he attacked before Sora got his bearing, before he could summon his Keyblade, his Somebody wouldn't be able to defend himself. It'd be over before it had a chance to start. There'd be no question who had won, who gained control of the heart. But some tiny part of him from Sora, that damned heroic part, just wouldn't be satisfied unless it was a fair fight.

Besides. Stomping Sora and taking control of their heart would be so much more fulfilling if it was done on even ground.

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They were surrounded by Lesser Nobodies, Isa and Axel fighting by his side. Then from behind him came a crack, a heart-wrenching scream. He looked over his shoulder just long enough to see that Axel had taken a fatal hit for Isa, then threw himself back at the Nobodies. He could keep them and Xigbar off the two just long enough for Axel to fade. Just long enough for them to have what little time he could give them.

Not even a minute later, there was a flash of light so bright it blinded him.

When Sora's vision cleared, he stood in a place that he felt he should know, but couldn't quite place. Pure darkness surrounded him for as far as he could see. But in the center of that darkness was himself and the massive, stained glass platform on which he stood. At the far end of the platform was a figure not much taller than himself dressed in a black Organization coat. The hood was up, concealing his face. And just like this place, Sora felt like he should know who this person was. He couldn't place a name or a face, though. That was happening more and more often lately.

And then, with two smaller flashes of light, the black-clad figure summoned two Keyblades and was attacking him. Sora barely had time to summon his own and defend himself before the attacker was in his face.

A resounding clash and the screech of metal on metal as their Keyblades locked

"Who are you?"

Sora didn't recognize him. Of course, that wasn't surprising. Roxas had always known his Somebody was slow on the uptake. But if he couldn't recognize someone that was a part of who he was, then Roxas wasn't going to tell him. He could figure out on his own.

"Someone from the dark."

Both launched back and just stood there, doubled over and panting as they assessed one another. Sora was- strong. Stronger than Roxas had been expecting he would be. It was _infuriating_. He should have known that Sora would be difficult to fight, to defeat.

But then, he had never fought himself before.

While, after a moment, Roxas stood straight, Sora never left his defensive crouch, ready to attack or dodge at a moment's notice. He eyed the other, the way he stood, how he held his Keyblades (Keyblades! _Plural!_ How in the worlds...?) at his sides. He was familiar; disturbingly so. That feeling still hadn't changed, but Sora was no closer to knowing who this was than he had been when he first arrived in this place. He hadn't exactly been clear with his answer.

Someone from the dark. That could mean Riku. Isa _had_ said that Riku had gone ahead of them to the Castle. But... this wasn't Riku. Sora was sure of it. The fighting style was all wrong, and while a lot must have changed in the well over a year it had been since he had seen Riku, it was highly unlikely that enough had changed for his friend to gain two Keyblades.

And that coat. That was the Organization uniform. Or so Sora assumed, since every member of it he had met had worn that coat. Though, considering that Isa had taken to wearing one at times and the stranger Isa sent to Cid's house (who, somewhere in the back of his mind, Sora thought could possibly have been Riku, except that he looked all wrong) had been wearing one as well, it was possible it wasn't just an Organization thing.

Well. Wondering would get him nowhere, especially with an impending battle. There was, from his experience, only one tried and true way to get answers.

"Are you... part of the Organization?"

Roxas tilted his head. Not the question he would have expected, but it looked like all his assumptions about Sora had been just a little off-center. He tried to play it off that he was indifferent about this fight, that he was exactly what everyone had always said he was. But it was hard, acting like he was emotionless. And it was something he wasn't very practiced at, unlike the other Nobodies.

So when he replied, Roxas couldn't quite keep the anger from creeping into his voice. "Whether or not I am isn't important right now."

There was a split second of stillness after that, then Roxas readjusted his grip on the Keyblades and ran full tilt at Sora.

He swung both Keyblades, but only actually attacked with one. Sora dodged easily, bringing his own Keyblade around to counter Roxas' next attack. There was a brief struggle of flashing attacks and counters that ended with Roxas' Keyblade pinned to the ground by Sora's. Which, as he only had one, was an unfortunate position for the latter.

It took seconds for Roxas to get free, twisting around, pulling his Keyblade away and leaping clear over Sora all in one fluid motion. He landed lightly, already posed for his next strike.

That was another tick against Sora. Unlike him, Roxas had been trained.

Almost immediately, Roxas leapt at Sora with a powerful swing, and the latter avoided the attack by jumping straight up into the air. Roxas followed him into the air easily, swinging upwards at the other and sending him yet higher when their Keyblades rebounded off each other.

Roxas landed hard, glanced over his shoulder up at Sora, then leapt up after him.

The pair twisted around in midair, trying to position themselves to attack before the other did. Roxas was faster, though only slightly. He swung, his Keyblades striking and bouncing off of Sora's. While Sora had blocked the attack, the force of Roxas' blow sent him flying towards the ground, and he only narrowly avoided landing badly.

For a moment after reaching the ground, Sora expected an attack. Then Roxas snarled something and he realized that the other was still hanging suspended in midair.

_"I_ should have been there for him, not _you!_ Of all people, why_ you?"_

From above, Roxas could see the whole of the Station, which was something Sora wasn't privy to. While he stood down there, glaring up at his Nobody, Roxas ignored him in favor of the images on the stained glass floor. There was Sora, of course- it was his heart, after all. His image was prominent. And alongside him, the four images of his friends.

Under his hood, Roxas scowled.

His _friends? _Was that supposed to sway him, provoke some understanding as to why Sora was so important? He'd had friends. Hayner, Olette, Pence, Namine, in a way, Xi-

... Axel.

Were his friends so much more insignificant than Sora's that he didn't deserve to be there when his best friend died? Sora hadn't even _liked_ him. Hell, he'd tried to _kill_ him at one point. Or was it because he had a heart, where Roxas didn't? That thought only served to further infuriate Roxas.

_"That's not a valid reason!"_

Comparing a Nobody and their Somebody's worth by the strength of their hearts... That was twisted on so many levels. By definition, a Nobody didn't have a heart. They would be doomed to always lose when one was involved. If he hadn't been _allowed_ to be there for Axel when he had died because of something that was dictated by his very existence...

For a brief second, Roxas saw red.

Then Sora, yelling to be heard over the distance, drew Roxas attention back to him.

"What're you talking about?"

Roxas couldn't stay suspended in the air forever, and dropped to the platform below after a few more moments. Their fight immediately resumed as Roxas slashed at Sora, who barely had time to get out of the way. Both of them were very fast, but Sora was having trouble avoiding Roxas' quick succession of side-slashes. When he raised his Keyblades, hoping to catch Sora off guard with a different tactic, the Keybearer did the same. He threw his weapon up just in time to block Roxas' attack.

The Nobody's attacks were fast and relentless, offering no quarter nor giving Sora a chance to do anything but guard. But his arms, hell, his whole_ body _ached from the blows to his Keyblade. Too much more of this, and-

Sora's leg gave out on the next blow. While he was distracted, Roxas knocked the Keyblade out of this hand. It skittered across the floor, coming to a stop some distance away. Sora leapt to his feet and ran for it, but he was too slow. Roxas beat him to his weapon and pinned Sora's Keyblade under one of his own. The Nobody swung forward, pointing at his now defenseless Other.

Both of them were breathing heavily, and for a brief moment Sora glared at Roxas. Then he bowed his head, one hand clenched in a tight fist. Roxas smirked, taking a moment to revel in his victory. He had this. He _knew_ he could beat his Somebody. Between them, he was the stronger one. If he couldn't be there for Axel in the end, fine. But now he would be able to _avenge_ him.

While Roxas had paused, Sora reached out towards his Keyblade. He had a vague inkling of who this guy was, and there was absolutely_ no way _(if his guess was right) that he was going to lose to his Nobody.

In a twinkling, the Keyblade disappeared.

Roxas saw the light and glanced down, starting when he saw the Keyblade was gone. "What?"

Sora was already surging to his feet when it reappeared in his hand. Before Roxas could react, Sora had struck him with a blow that decided the outcome.

The two Keyblades fell from his hands, disappearing. The Nobody staggered past Sora, his hood slipping back when he stumbled and caught himself. He was probably supposed to submit to Sora now, to willingly join back with his heart.

Roxas snorted, shaking with fury. Not in his lifetime. For all he cared, Sora could be incomplete until he _died_. He wasn't going back to the person that had mocked, beaten, and tried to kill his best friend. Not even if it killed him. There was someone that might have been able to convince him otherwise.

But he had been forced to watch helplessly as that person was murdered.

The world grew blindingly white around them once again as the battle for dominance ended. Sora stood right there, but Roxas couldn't be bothered to turn around. Instead, still so furious and filled with hate for this person he was supposed to be, Roxas spat the last word over his shoulder.

"Anyone but _you." _

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For the briefest moment, the Sniper felt his breath pushed from him and he was left gasping. Even from his position high above, Xigbar felt the force of Isa's power exploding around him and outwards. It ricocheted against the white walls and dissipated, small wisps still hanging around long enough to float down around them like dark snow. His golden eye widened slightly and he stayed pressed against the ground a while longer, trying to assess his situation.

Isa had completely flipped, from only merely touched by darkness to fully engulfed in black tendrils, those golden irises completely enveloping his pupils.

Xigbar was a master of figuring people out. He knew how to manipulate, he knew how far to push before easing up, he always knew what was going on, who was doing what, why this or that was happening. Giving people a glance, just by what they said and their body language, he could tell what they were all about.

Just a glance at Isa could tell him that there was no sanity left, there was no reasoning, there was no concept of humanity left in him but the simplest basic desire to kill Xigbar in the worst way possible. Xigbar knew it was going to be a filthy, rough battle, and if he didn't manage to make it to the end then so be it, there wasn't must left of interest in that place anyway.

Xigbar hopped up, kneeling, summoning his guns in both hands and he contemplated his next motions. He would have to be far more cautious in this battle; unfortunately, being analytical with such an opponent would prove useless, especially now.

There was no more time to waste. He somersaulted into the air, his guns pointed down at the platform below as bullets rocketed down. He found some of the bullets being flung away rather carelessly by the shadows consuming Isa, his eye widening slightly at that. He'd never quite seen such power, not since...

Well, no matter. It just meant he would have to try harder.

Xigbar somersaulted over him, and it was like it was happening in slow motion, Isa's perception had become so fast. His body was practically moving on its own. Isa swung his claymore, a shockwave of Darkness following the path of the blade. Isa had no intention of letting Xigbar gain distance; he closed with the Nobody, slashing and hacking madly away.

This power was maddening, consuming, _wonderful. _What had Isa been so afraid of? Afraid enough to let Lea die, when he could have just given in and assaulted the castle himself. He felt strong enough to do that.

Some part of Isa's mind noticed that Sora had disappeared, that there was fighting going on on the balcony above them now. But Isa didn't care. All he cared about was destroying Xigbar.

The Nobody clearly hadn't expected the speed, the altitude that Isa gained in such a short period of time. Isa's power hadn't just increased, it had quite possibly tripled. There wasn't nearly enough time for Xigbar to portal away from his assault, only managing to dodge an attack and receive the blunt force of the flat side of the blade smash his chest. The Nobody was flung; he couldn't slow his projection, that would simply open him up for an even worse attack. Instead he took the blow the best he could, rolling in the air a little to at least prevent himself from smashing into the wall.

He let out a cacophonous hack suddenly, his mouth burning with the taste of copper, blood touching the corner of his lip. His lungs felt weighted, his breath ragged. But he had to keep his momentum, if he stopped for too long he knew he would be dead in a flash.

He would be dead anyway, that was for certain, but he couldn't go without giving one hell of a fight first. The least he could do was enjoy it, after all.

Xigbar teleported higher, shots flying every which way, making every attempt to hit Isa. It was a massive barrage. The nobody winced and swallowed back metallic saliva as he put every ounce of his strength left into at least trying to maim the other man, his own body barely visible as he flitted through space.

Rounds came at Isa from every direction, but most glanced away from him as they approached, repelled by the darkness that swirled violently around him. They didn't have enough mass to resist. One or two rounds nicked him, but Isa didn't care.

There was blood coming from the Sniper's mouth; Isa'd done internal damage. The Nobody must be in agony.

Good, Isa thought. He deserved it.

Isa leapt into the air, swinging his Claymore like a hammer to strike with the flat. He wouldn't give Braig a clean death. No, Isa wanted to pound him to a bloody pulp. Braig couldn't feel emotional pain? Then Isa would deal him as much physical pain as he could before he let the Nobody fade.

_"I WILL REDUCE YOU TO NOTHING." _Isa snarled.

Xigbar could only block the attack as best he could, bringing his guns up to deflect Isa's claymore. There was a sickening crack, something he never expected to hear, his body flung backward from the backlash of the blunette's attack.

His single eye widened, hitting the ground, bouncing up a little from the sheer force. The Nobody looked down at his guns; the right one had mostly shattered. He had never seen a weapon break and he had never fought anything that could so much as put a scratch in any of the Organization's weapons. This was truly unreal.

Xigbar was pretty sure he wasn't going to be getting up for round two. His abdomen was racked with shuddering gasps, though he still maintained his shit-eating grin and his smug expression.

"S'a good thing I'm already nothing," he muttered to himself, awaiting the final blow.

Isa didn't want to be in the grips of his Berserker mode for this. He wanted to end this personally. But this Berserk was different from any other he'd experienced. Isa was in control, and the Darkness obeyed. The glow faded from his eyes as he walked slowly over to the downed Nobody. He came to a stop over the Sniper, glaring down with cold, yellow eyes. His face was impassive; he was calm for this.

This man had destroyed his life. More than anyone else, in Isa's mind, this man was responsible. Not the faceless, nameless researcher pretending to be Ansem. Not even Ansem himself. Braig's mocking face was the one Isa saw, when he thought of the monsters that took everything from him.

Isa slammed a foot down onto Xigbar's stomach, relishing the grunt of pain that escaped the Nobody. But his face betrayed nothing, staying as flat as if he had no heart himself.

"No. You're less than nothing, Braig. You're worthless now, and you always were."

Isa raised his Claymore, keeping his icy stare on Xigbar's face as he spoke, in a voice that could freeze fire.

"This is the pain you twice put Lea through." And Isa slammed his claymore into the Nobody's chest.

Xigbar's body convulsed, the pain washing over him. So, that was it. It was done. _He_ was done. He coughed up a bubble of blood, but even in his current state he had to vie for the last word.

Xigbar gave Isa wide grin, a sheen of blood coating his teeth.

"Sucks you... never got to see just how worthless... your little fuck buddy was..." He laughed raspingly. "Killing me won't bring him back. You... have fun living the rest of your sad little life knowing... _you're all alone_..."

He laughed again, breaking into a bit of a fit. His body began to quickly deteriorate as his laughter echoed away, his physical form finally ebbing away completely.

Isa glared at the spot where Xigbar had faded for a long moment.

No. It wouldn't bring Lea back.

He'd thought he'd feel satisfied. He finally had his revenge. After all these years. It had felt good while Isa was fighting; he'd felt satisfaction in the crunch of bones and give of tearing flesh.

But now, Isa only felt empty.

But it wasn't over. There was still the white-haired researcher to deal with. Isa didn't much care about him, or about the other remaining Nobody who he had never known. But Isa would kill them too, and anything else that got in his way.

The blue-haired man wrenched his claymore out of the floor, where it had stuck after passing through Xigbar. Isa turned his attention now to the fighting going on on the balcony above him. There was Riku, and was that Kairi wielding a keyblade as well?

Where had he been when Lea was shot dead?

There was a flash to his side, and Isa glanced over to see Sora suddenly reappear. He scowled.

"Where were you?" Although honestly, Isa was glad Sora hadn't been there to interfere with his revenge.

Sora looked rather confused and a bit disoriented. He hadn't even been able to get his bearings before Isa questioned him. "I- I'm not really sure. Some weird place... felt like I'd been there before." Already the memory of that place was fading. "But I... I _think _I fought Roxas."

Which was odd. How he could fight... himself? And what in the worlds had they been fighting about? It felt important, like something he shouldn't forget. But he couldn't quite remember.

Sora frowned, finally taking notice of his surroundings and looking around. Blood splattered here and there, and a great crack in the floor. He could have asked what happened, but it was obvious; Isa versus Xigbar, with a clear, untouched winner. Though there was something _off_ about Isa...

Isa's scowl deepened. Sora had _fought Roxas?_ How could that be? Unless Roxas was..._conscious _within Sora?

The thought was horrifying. Had Roxas been _aware_ inside Sora, helplessly watching Lea die? Roxas was Lea's little; the thought of Squall, or Yuffie, or Aerith, trapped inside another person, unable to direct themselves or speak or even _scream-_

The Organization had hurt Roxas, destroyed his life, just like it had done to Isa. He'd had the whole story from Lea, in the few weeks they'd had together. And now, he'd had to stand by helplessly while Lea died in front of him.

Sora, on the other hand, had never liked Lea. He had once tried to kill Lea himself. Isa wanted someone on his side who _actually cared_. The thought flickered through his mind just for a moment; _'I don't want to mourn alone.'_ But then it was gone.

Isa turned his golden glare on the Keybearer.

"You should have let him win. He deserves to be the one to fight this battle."

Isa brushed past the Keybearer without another glance, heading towards the Skyway that would take him to the next level of the castle.

Sora stared after Isa for a second, not quite registering what he just said. Why in the worlds would he have let Roxas win? Why did it _matter _who won that fight? Especially when he wasn't even sure there had actually been one.

Then he noticed that Isa was way ahead of him and, with a start, hurried after him. Falling behind in a place like this didn't sound all that appealing. Besides, he wanted some clarification. And the moment he drew level with Isa, he asked for it. "Hey! What'd you mean by that?"

Isa didn't even look at Sora, continuing to stride up the Skyway. Any Nobodies that stood in his way he swatted like flies. They would have to throw something stronger than Dusks at him if they wanted to slow him down. Dusks weren't even satisfying to kill.

He almost didn't bother answering the Keybearer. Sora was too thick to understand. It would probably just be a waste of his time to try. But Sora was clearly not going to let it go until he said something. How troublesome.

"Once you collect Kairi, what reason do you have to keep fighting the Organization?" Isa asked, in that cold, disinterested voice. "Aside from 'I am the Keybearer, therefore I can be as incorrigible a busybody as I like.'"

Isa's tone, what he said... Sora didn't know how to begin to react to it all. No, he didn't have a reason once Kairi was saved. But no matter where he went people seemed to think that it was important that he fought the Organization. And if _he_ didn't, then who was going to? Isa? He'd get himself killed if he took on the last of them alone.

But it wasn't just that. Something about Isa himself was bothering Sora. What had happened to Isa in the few minutes he'd been gone? The gold eyes, the ears, the cold attitude... He frowned, Keyblade still out but not really having a purpose as Isa destroyed everything before he could get a hit in. Something wasn't right. But Sora couldn't quite place _what_.

Well. If Sora had nothing to say, that was fine with Isa. He didn't feel like elaborating either.

Isa pushed open the door at the top of the landing, and instantly lunged in to start smashing Heartless. These were just Shadows, pathetic, _not even a challenge_, Isa wanted something that would give him a _fight_, not Heartless so pathetic that a pigeon-toed little girl flailing about with a flowery key could defeat them.

Where had Kairi even _gotten_ that? Were Keyblades just being passed around like candy, and no one had thought to mention it to Isa?

The moment the Heartless were dealt with, both Kairi and Sora's Keyblades were dismissed. They hurried toward each other, stopping a few feet apart. Sora hesitated for a moment, not knowing what to say after over a year being away, then offered a small smile.

"Kairi. I'm glad you're alright."

Kairi smiled at that. "You and Riku never came home. I was going to go looking for you, but the Organization grabbed me before I could."

She was right. But he'd never meant to make her worry. He just... hadn't been able to find his way again. And he couldn't have gone back without Riku. "... I'm sorry-"

Then Kairi was hugging him. For a surprised second, Sora didn't know what to do. Then he returned the hug, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. She was safe and fine and the Organization hadn't hurt her and... And that was more then he could have asked for.

A ways off on the landing, Riku smiled ever so slightly and started to turn away.

Isa scowled when he saw Riku start to leave. "What happened to Namine?" he demanded. Riku was supposed to be taking care of her. Why wasn't she here?

If Isa hadn't started talking to him there and then, Riku would have bailed; he just wasn't ready to face Sora yet, even when he knew there was a good chance of this happening. But now he was trapped in. He _could _just pretend he didn't hear and leave, but he wouldn't.

Not after what happened.

Riku walked over to meet Isa, so he could talk without shouting across the landing. "She was there one second, then gone the moment I turned my back. So I can't say for absolute certain, but..." He glanced over at Kairi. "She was a Nobody in close proximity to her Somebody. So I have a hunch."

Then Riku went quiet. He looked over at his friends, then sighed and turned back to Isa. "Isa, I'm sorry. We got here right as it happened; There wasn't time to do anything. I'm sorry."

Isa's fists clenched tight enough for the handle of his claymore to creak a bit under the strain. So. Namine was gone, too. Back into Kairi, like she had never existed. Isa had only known her for a few weeks, but she had reminded him so much of Aerith. And she'd seemed so frightened of going back to Kairi.

Isa'd thought Riku cared more about her than to dismiss her so easily. But apparently he was wrong. He made a disgusted noise. Riku was sorry? Well, 'sorry' wouldn't bring Lea back. The berserker spared a glance for Sora and the redheaded girl he embraced. He knew Sora had been searching a long time for his friends, he understood that, but right then, watching Sora with his loved ones turned Isa's stomach. He couldn't bear to watch their _touching reunion._

Isa brushed past Riku, with only a muttered "I'm going on ahead." Sora wasn't even paying attention, he had no trouble slipping through the door into-

-into a...graveyard? Isa stopped just inside the room, looking around with a confused frown on his face. Two of the strange gates glowed blue, although the one closest to him had been snapped in half. Isa leaned forward to peer at the insignia on the ground there; two crossed keyblades, and the words "Key of Destiny."

Isa's eyes widened; was this- he glanced up to count the gates. 11 in total, all but two red- that meant-

Isa counted backwards from where he stood, his eyes falling on the only red gate still standing. Number VII.

Lea.

Isa almost lunged up the step, stopping before the gate. The glowing red square on the floor in front of it bore the silhouette of Lea's chakrams. Isa bent to read the inscription. "Flurry of Dancing Flames." Was that Lea's codename? It seemed so...whimsical, for a group like Organization XIII.

It suited him.

Isa felt his eyes burning, and he shut them tightly. He was not going to cry again. Not until the Organization was destroyed. Not until Lea was avenged.

Isa stood, reaching to stroke the edge of the gate. But at his touch, the stone crumbled and fell away to rubble. Isa was left with his hand still extended; he let it drop slowly to his side.

"...not even a memorial for a Nobody, huh..." he muttered softly to himself.

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A/N: The Roxas vs Sora portion of this chapter was written exclusively by Ocean's Tale


	14. Corrupted

A/N: And we're back! Sorry for the small delay; real life's been pretty crazy. This chapter's a bit short, but the next will be quite long to make up for it. Enjoy!

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Sora forced his eyes open, staring at 'Ansem' in absolute shock.

"Riku. It's Riku! Riku's here!" Head bowed and shoulders shaking, Sora sank to his knees, still holding onto Riku's hand. "I looked everywhere for you!" His voice cracked.

"I know. I'm sorry. I just..." Riku sighed and briefly glanced away. "I didn't want you to find me. Not... not like this. It would have killed me."

"I thought you'd died!"

"I'm sorry. But Isa told you otherwise. This was for the best."

After a short while, Riku helped Sora to his feet and looked between him and Kairi. "C'mon, Isa went on ahead; we should catch up."

It wasn't a long walk to the graveyard-like room, which Riku called Proof of Existence. It _was, _after all, the very next room. The trio made their way past the graves toward Isa, Riku ignoring them and Kairi looking around as they walked. But only two of them reached Isa where he stood by a crumbling, glowing stone marked with Axel's weapon.

Sora had been following them for a bit, but almost immediately got distracted. As Riku and Kairi went on, he slowed to a stop, looking at the row next to him. He absentmindedly picked his way over to the cracked, blue headstone. He stared at it for a bit, noting how it had snapped in half. '_Well, it won't work anymore. Dang. These were really handy._'

He frowned, then knelt in front of it and ghosted a hand over the image of two crossed Keyblades. "Key of Destiny"... why did that sound so familiar? And why had he thought that? He hadn't been here before. Unless... this had to be Roxas' stone.

Across the room, Riku had started talking to Isa. "We're ready to go whenever you are. We can get to Luxord from his stone, but Xemnas...we'll have to take the fight to him."

He almost added '_We have to do this. If nothing else, then for Lea._' But looking at Isa, standing in front of what was now essentially Lea's tombstone... it didn't feel right.

Besides. That didn't seem like something Isa would need to be told.

Isa tore his eyes away from the glowing red marker, letting his gaze fall on the blue gate marked with a IX.

"Let's go, then. Maybe this one will put up a bit of a fight."

Isa didn't really care, though. This Nobody, this Luxord, was just in his way. Killing him was just tying up loose ends. Still, Isa was itching for a fight. He glanced at Sora then, bending in front of Roxas' stone. Roxas' _blue_ stone.

Had Lea known? That Roxas was still in there, still conscious. Isa didn't think that he had. His fists clenched, and he started towards the remaining gate.

"...I'll go by myself. You lot stay here." This wasn't Sora's fight. Isa would take care of it himself.

Sora jerked his head up, forcing himself to look away from the stone. "What? No!" He jumped to his feet and hurried up the rows. "Isa, we're not letting you go after him by yourself."

Riku spoke up as well, taking a few steps forward. "Sora's right. Luxord's a tricky one- he controls _time_. He's not as tough as Xemnas, but still nothing you'll want to go up against alone."

Isa paused, turning his glare on the boys. More specifically, on Sora.

"_You're _going to try to stop me? This has nothing to do with you. Why don't you take your little girlfriend and run along home?"

That was all it took to light Sora's temper. He absolutely would _not_ stand for Isa taking that tone when talking about Kairi.

"We don't _want_ to stop you!" He snapped. "Maybe I don't have as good a reason as you do for wanting to take out the Organization. But they kidnapped Kairi, and tried to do the same to me. If that wasn't enough, they tried to kill _you!_And that's plenty to make taking them down my business!"

Sora's tone had gone icy. "If you don't like it, tough! I'm not giving up and going back home just because you're _upset_. Neither are my friends. And you can just get over yourself and accept that." Sora snarled. "Or not, since you clearly don't seem to care either way."

Sora stormed up to Isa, returning his glare full force. "Dammit, Isa, _we're trying to help you!_"

"I don't need your hel-" Isa started to snap, and then Sora brushed right past him, going straight for Luxord's marker. Kairi followed, hurrying by without looking at Isa. Riku stayed where he was, though he did give Isa a worried sort of look.

Isa stormed after Sora, scowling. "I will _not_ be spoken to like that by a _child_-

He started to make a grab for Sora's hood, but the boy passed through the marker before Isa could reach him. Isa clenched his fist, gritting his teeth, and then followed through the portal, intent on telling Sora what was what-

Isa paused when he came out onto the landing outside. He hadn't been paying attention to the windows in the Hall of Empty Melodies; he'd been somewhat occupied by...other matters. So he hadn't noticed the glowing, heart-shaped moon hanging in the sky above them. It was... captivatingly beautiful. He stared at it for a moment, the words he'd had for Sora forgotten for now.

A beam of light suddenly shot up towards the great moon, snapping Isa out of his strange trance. He shook his head to clear his mind; he hadn't even noticed Riku follow him out onto the landing.

Sora turned around and leaned back to try and see where it was coming from. "What in the worlds...?"

Riku, accompanied by Kairi, paused by Isa and looked up. "That would be the King and DiZ- Or, rather, Ansem the Wise. They're on a higher level; We should pick up the pace."

Ansem? That got Isa's attentio-

Wait. DiZ. The man in red from the mansion? He was Ansem? ...he was Ansem. Now it made sense.

"That's how he knew," Isa almost growled. He started after Sora, who had begun to run ahead- but a portal opened up directly in front of him. Isa stepped back momentarily; a blonde man he had never seen emerged from the portal. This must be Luxord, then.

Suddenly, before Isa could lunge, the man snapped his fingers. Giant playing cards appeared from nowhere, surrounding the lot of them. They spun around the three trapped inside; Isa didn't watch them. He didn't want to get dizzy. He snarled, raising his claymore to slice through the cards-

-but they parted on their own, showing Sora and no Luxord. Wait, what just-

"You okay?" Kairi asked Sora.

From his response, it seemed like the fight had already happened. How-? ...wait, Luxord controlled time. He'd missed the entire fight?

Isa let out a snarl of frustration, flinging his Claymore against the ground in a rage. He hunched over, clenching his eyes shut and taking deep, furious breaths for a few moments.

Fine. Fine. He hadn't cared about Luxord anyway. And there was still the white-haired researcher. Xemnas, he guessed. Isa scooped his Claymore back up, starting back towards the portal to Proof of Existence without a word.

Riku watched Isa's retreating back for a few seconds then, with a sigh, rushed after him and grabbed his upper arm. He turned back to his friends. "Sora, Kairi, you two go on ahead. We'll be there in a second." Sora and Kairi exchanged a look, then did as he asked.

Then he watched, waiting until they had passed through the portal. Once he and Isa were able to talk without eavesdropping, he looked back at Isa and started talking. "Isa, I need you to stop and listen to me." Riku took a breath, steeling himself for the coming conversation. This wasn't gonna be fun. Not even a little. But it had to be done, and no one else was going to do it. Well, Sora might. But he'd just end up making things worse.

Then again, there was no guarantee that Riku wouldn't do the same.

"Take a look at yourself, Isa. Pointed ears, pure gold eyes, and have you even heard yourself? This is exactly what I warned you about. You're abusing massive amounts of Darkness and it's using you." He didn't quite frown; it was more a worried look than anything. "I don't fault you for why you gave in to it. Under the circumstances I would have done exactly the same thing." And he would have done it without a second thought or a single regret.

"But this _will_ kill you if you don't get it under control. I know you don't care about that, but your family does. As do Sora and I.

"This," He made a broad gesture at Isa, "Isn't Isa. Not the one I know. Not the one Sora not only considers his friend, but probably looks up to." Riku gave a shake of his head. "This is as close to a Nobody as you can get without turning. And I seem to recall your opinion on becoming a Nobody being 'over my dead body'."

Isa's eyes narrowed at Riku. He jerked his arm away from the younger man's grasp.

Isa had it under control. The way the Darkness had obeyed him in that fight with Braig proved that well enough. He'd let the fear of the dark consume him for years, but now he had _finally _mastered it. He wasn't afraid of the Darkness anymore.

"You're just a coward," he informed Riku, his tone matter-of-fact. "Too cowardly to face the Darkness. Too cowardly even to face your best friend, and over what. Because you _looked different?_ Isa snorted derisively. "I don't want to hear anything from _you_ about it."

Isa turned his back on Riku, heading through the gate.

As close as he could get to a Nobody without turning, hm? Well that was fine. Why not? Lea was dead, and it was his fault.

Isa didn't want to feel anything.

Riku left his hand up for a moment, then slowly curled his fingers into a fist and let his hand fall back to his side. He watched Isa go back through the gate and, once he had crossed, sighed and closed his eyes.

Yes, he'd been cowardly about the Darkness. A year ago, back in Castle Oblivion. The fact that his very skin smelled like Darkness had been terrifying. And then he'd realized that he could balance himself with the light Mickey had given him. That he could use the strengths and weaknesses of both Light and Dark to his advantage.

And he'd be the last person to deny that he was terrified of facing Sora looking like this. Because to become Ansem and give in to the Darkness felt like an insult to everything Sora had done to save him from himself.

Riku's shoulders sagged ever so slightly. He had hoped that, just maybe, he could talk some sense into Isa. Usually he was a reasonable person.

Looked like the Darkness had taken even that.

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Sora and Kairi had occupied themselves while Riku and Isa talked, standing by the next doorway and catching up. When Isa returned, followed a few minutes later by Riku, Sora and Kairi turned their attention to the other two. Neither looked very happy, so whatever Riku wanted to say must not have gone well.

"You two ready to get going?" Sora asked.

Isa scowled and nodded. "I've been ready for a very long time." Without another word, he turned and started out the only remaining exit to the room. Towards the leader of the Organization, he hoped, and the end of all of this. The others could follow if they liked.

Isa stopped dead when he walked out the door. There, standing before him, was Ansem. Looking nearly unchanged since that day in the hospital ten years before. The day he'd lost Lea the first time. And here he was again; things had really come full circle. Or maybe history was just repeating itself. Nearby stood a strange, humanoid mouse, and alongside him, Sora's two friends.

Then, Isa saw the man standing to the left of Ansem. The silver-haired man, wearing a black coat.

Isa stopped paying attention to literally everything else around him, focusing on that one man. And it seemed he'd noticed Isa at the same moment; the man slowly turned to look at him. An unsettling grin spread across his face.

"Ah." Xemnas gestured at Isa with one hand. "If it isn't the survivor. It's a shame, what happened to your friend." At this, Xemnas pulled his hands to his chest, leaning forward. "You must be so sad. If I had a heart, I'm sure it would be breaking for you." He frowned, too deep, too pinched, a parody of a facial expression. "If only you had joined us as well. Maybe then you might have been able to protect him."

Isa saw red, just for a moment. He was going to destroy this man. The Darkness rose up around him, seething, caressing him. With a loud snarl, Isa started to lunge forward towards the Nobody, even as red blades appeared in the Nobody's hands.

Then, before Isa could reach his target, a bright light washed over them both. Isa flinched away from the light; it _burned, _hot and agonizing as the Darkness was cold. He felt like his skin was being stripped away, bit by bit, like he would dissolve into the light.

Then, a shockwave, and Isa was hurled into a wall. His head struck the hard marble, and fireworks exploded behind his eyelids, consciousness washing away into the light.

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The pure light _burned_, searing away at the Darkness in him. Riku had felt this once before, back in Castle Oblivion. But he had forgotten just how painful light was to someone steeped in Darkness. It didn't seem to be bothering Sora, Kairi, King Mickey, Donald or Goofy as much. Which made sense, as none of them were as tainted. Heh, Kairi had _never _been touched by the Dark. This was probably comfortable to her. This was going to be the worst for Isa and himself.

Kingdom Hearts, Isa. How was he holding up to this?

Then the shock wave hit, the force of it slamming Riku to the floor. He vaguely realized that they others had also been knocked over, then his consciousness vanished.

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Sora was the first to recover from the blast of light, with Kairi not far behind him. He blinked his eyes open, body sore from the impact but unhurt. He hauled himself to his feet, looking around to make sure everyone was still accounted for. Kairi was getting to her feet; Donald, Goofy and the King were waking up; Isa was still out, though, so he should check on him; And Riku-

Riku was only just stirring. But that wasn't important. What was important was the fact that he looked like Riku again. Pale skin, silvery white hair- sure he still wore the coat and, for some reason, seemed to be wearing a blindfold. But he looked _right_ again.

Sora dashed over to his side, dropping to his hands and knees beside him. Just as he was about to start shaking his friend awake, Riku groaned, a noise laced with pain. Lightheaded and aching, he forced himself into a sitting position. Standing... well.

Standing could wait a little while longer.

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Isa came back to consciousness slowly, awakening to a world of pain. _Everything _hurt; Isa felt like he'd been scrubbed raw, inside and out. His head was throbbing, pain shooting through it with the beating of his heart. He started to open his eyes, and immediately shut them again; even the meager light of the World that Never Was was painful at that moment.

Isa tried to sit up, but could only get up partway; sitting on his feet and curled up, clutching his stomach. He held his torso up with one hand, trying desperately not to vomit. It wasn't just the physical pain that was affecting him like this, though.

For the first time since the fight with Braig, Isa felt like his head was clear. The words he'd spoken to Sora and Riku, that had seemed so justified at the time- was it him who'd said those things? Was that what...was in his heart? That coldness and cruelty...was that who Isa was? Lea would be disgusted with him if he could see-

Oh god, _Lea._ Isa's chest clenched painfully and he almost lost the fight to keep his lunch down. He'd let the Darkness numb him to the pain of losing Lea again. While he'd hidden behind it, Isa hadn't had to feel it. But now his defenses were stripped away by the Light, and he was left bare and unprotected.

Isa curled tightly around himself, his fingers digging into his shoulders hard enough to strain the fabric of the coat he wore. He let out a soft, agonized moan, holding his breath to choke back the sobs that threatened to well up within him. He buried his face in his knees, teeth clenched, and trembled, trying to contain himself.

Lea. _Lea._

Sora saw movement out of the corner of his eye and looked over in time to see Isa curl in on himself. It was painful to look at; He hated seeing any of his friends upset. Even the ones that had been acting cruelly to him. Sora sat up on his knees, still looking at Isa. "Isa..."

Riku only heard the murmured name from next to him, but he could guess what was going on. Without the Darkness dampening and blocking it out, Isa must be feeling the full loss of Lea for the first time. That... it had to be simply unbearable.

He grit his teeth and forced himself to his feet, staggering under a sudden wave of nausea. Riku waited a little while until he recovered, then took a tentative step forward. It was a little odd, getting use to walking around with the blindfold again. But by the time he had gotten to Isa's side, Riku hardly noticed his lack of sight.

Riku knelt and, with a bit of hesitation, reached out to lightly place a hand on Isa's shoulder. "Isa, we can stay here for a while if you need some time to recover." He said quietly, giving the shoulder a soft squeeze. "We're almost at the end, though."

"Yeah." Sora piped up, trying to help cheer up (or at the very least, encourage) Isa. Sure, he'd said some pretty awful things to Sora. But he was kinda used to people he cared about being taken by the Darkness and acting like that. "A little longer, and we can finish this for good."

Riku glanced over at Sora- or rather, where he assumed Sora was- for a moment, then 'looked' back at Isa. Another pause. Then he shifted and pulled Isa into a hug. It was a little awkward, due to how Isa was curled in on himself, but he made it work. "I'm sorry." He said quietly.

Despite all Isa's efforts, a sob escaped him. It took all his effort to hold back a second. He was humiliating himself. He had to pull it together. But oh god, _Lea was gone,_ he'd had a second chance with him and he'd _squandered it,_ he should never have let Lea come, should have left him behind, he'd _still be alive,_ but Isa had been afraid to be separated again but _look how that had turned out_, he was a _fool, he_ should have been the one, _Lea should have let him die, _but no, he was gone and Isa was still here, left behind again. Always left behind.

Isa shoulders shook in silence for a few minutes. He had to get it together. Had to. He still had work to do.

Finally, he took a deep breath, and forced himself to sit up. He scrubbed at his face with his hands for a moment. Then, he let them drop, and opened blue eyes to look at the boys.

"...I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."

Riku waited until it looked like Isa had himself sorted before releasing him. He really didn't have to apologize. It had been an unsettling day for all of them, but for Isa it had been absolutely devastating. "Don't worry about it, Isa. I'd say that it's been a rough day, but that'd be a pretty horrific understatement."

For the first time since the Light had struck him, Isa took a good look at Riku. Instead of the tall, dark man he'd been familiar with, a teenage boy with a blindfold over his eyes sat before him. So this was what Riku was meant to look like.

"...what happened, exactly...?"

"Long story short; I was manipulated and possessed by Xemnas' Heartless year before last." Riku gave a strained smile. He almost said that it was his fault that Destiny Islands fell. If he hadn't opened that door... But that wasn't something he was willing to share just yet. "I spent part of the year Sora was asleep subduing the Heartless, and the rest of it getting the Darkness under control. Then I got into a fight. One I couldn't win without using the full extent of my Dark powers. The only way to do that was to _become_ Ansem."

Riku absentmindedly rubbed the skin over his heart as he talked; while everything ached and burned after that scouring the light had given him, his heart still hurt the most. "And that explosion... That was pure light. I don't think there's a shred of Darkness left in either of us. That's why I changed back." Riku smiled, and this time it was wholehearted. "And why you're back to normal."

Instead of relieved, Isa looked like he'd been punched in the face.

He was glad he was back to normal; the person he'd been for the last short while was _not _who he wanted to be. But those feelings were overwhelmed by one pressing thought; 'How am I going to fight?'

He'd never really fought in his life before he'd been scarred; so he'd never fought without the Darkness. If he'd been using it to augment his strength for all this time, his entire adult life, how was he going to survive a fight with the leader of the Organization? He'd barely survived the fight with Xaldin, even Berserking-

-could he even Berserk anymore? What was he going to do, without the Darkness? He'd just be in the way, a liability. Useless. And after he had worked so hard to learn to control it. Was all of that work for nothing?

Isa glanced around him, looking to see where his claymore had landed. He forced himself to his feet; a wave of dizziness threatened to knock him back down, but he forced it back.

He picked up the sword, swinging it experimentally. It felt...quite a bit heavier than he was used to. It was almost as hard to swing it as it had been after Xaldin had wounded him. But at least he could swing it. At least there was that much. He gave himself a moment to collect himself.

"...let's keep moving."

Riku got to his feet as well. If Isa thought he was ready to move on, then they'd move on. They were so close to ending this battle that it was almost painful.

Of course, Sora had something he wanted to ask about before they got moving. He'd wanted to wait until Riku was done talking with Isa, and now he had his chance. "Hey, Riku. You gonna take that blindfold off?" He didn't know why Riku had taken to wearing it. All he knew was that it bugged him, not knowing what was underneath.

Riku actually started; he was so used to its presence that he had forgotten that he was even wearing the blindfold. There really wasn't a reason to wear it _or _the coat anymore. Not now that his Darkness was gone. Riku reached back to the knot of fabric and hesitated for just a moment. Then he worked at the knot and pulled the cloth off his eyes.

It took almost a minute of blinking and some pained squinting for his eyes to adjust to the light after being covered for almost a year. Sora grinned.

"Why were you wearing that, anyway?"

Of all people, it was King Mickey that spoke up to answer the question. "His eyes couldn't lie. If he couldn't see his Darkness, then it couldn't empower him. So as long as he wore that blindfold, he was safe from himself."

Riku wasn't even paying attention to them at this point. With the blindfold gone, all that was left was the coat. And once he started the process of taking it off, it felt like he couldn't get that coat off fast enough. As soon as he was free of the black cloth, Riku tossed it over the edge of the balcony then dropped the blindfold on top of it.

Now, _finally_, he could be done with this Darkness business on a personal level. "Okay. Let's go."

Leaving the coat and blindfold draped over the railing, they started towards the archway to the next room.


	15. Nobody

A/N: We're gearing up for the finale here! Just two more chapters to go after this one. This chapter's a doozy, so I hope it makes up for the last one being a bit short. Enjoy!

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Once inside Ruin and Creation's Passage, the group found themselves forced to stop. They stood on a small platform from which they could see three more suspended in midair, spread evenly between them and the door into a central pillar. But there seemed to be no way to get between one platform and another; there was no path, and the distance was much too far to jump. Sora groaned.

"Aw, man. How're we supposed to get up there?"

Isa scowled, glancing around. He hadn't come this far, sacrificed so much, just to be stopped by the lack of a bridge. A strip of blue light along one edge of the platform caught his eye. Glancing up towards the nearest platform, he thought he saw a similar blue glow on the edge nearest the group. Hmm...

Isa started towards the blue strip on their own platform. He crouched down, examining the strip for a trigger or switch of some kind. Riku noticed his behavior and frowned, moving over to him.

"What's up?"

"...this blue strip. I suspect it holds the key for how to proceed." Isa's frown deepened. Maybe...

Isa got down on one knee to steady himself; if he was wrong, he didn't want to overbalance. It would be a long, _long _way down if he fell. He stretched one hand out over the open space, lowering it slowly until he encountered resistance. At his touch, a section of path flared into being, clear as glass but just as solid.

Sora started, surprised and taken off-guard by the sudden appearance of the path. But just a moment later, he was standing right by Isa and peering at it. "Okay, wasn't expecting that." It was a good way to keep away intruders, though. Just make the safe path invisible, unless they felt like tempting fate by stepping out onto nothing.

Almost cautiously, Sora placed a foot firmly on the walkway, half expecting it to give out under his weight. When it didn't crack, break, or send him tumbling into the abyss beneath, Sora grinned broadly.

Riku knew what he was planning before he did it. "Sora, I don't-"

Three quick steps, and Sora was almost across to the second platform, the path under his feet revealing itself as he went. "Come on, guys! It's perfectly safe! Or, almost. Just don't step off the edge and you'll be fine."

Isa almost rolled his eyes, following after Sora. The long drop right under his feet was a bit disconcerting, but if it was going to break there was nothing he could do about it, so no sense in worrying. But the moment Sora set foot on the platform, Nobodies burst from the floor, wielding strange, clear blocks of the same sort of material as the bridge. Isa nearly gasped with surprise, charging up the bridge.

"Watch out!"

As soon as Isa called out his warning, Riku was charging up the bridge right beside him, Keyblade out and ready. A magical bridge extending over vast amounts of nothing didn't seem quite as unsafe when his friends were in danger. Like Riku, Sora had his Keyblade out in a heartbeat, bringing it up just in time to block as one of the Nobodies swung a cube at him.

No magic (yet), no shapeshifting, no dancing around- just straightforward physical attacks. This would be an easy fight. With Isa and Riku right behind him, Sora leapt and swung at the Nobody- only to have his attack deflected by that cube it held. Okay, maybe not so easy.

Isa lunged into the opening left by Sora's deflection, getting two good strikes in. But only two swings, and his arm was already tired. He barely raised his Claymore in time to deflect a blow from the Sorcerer, nearly backing into a second.

Taking Isa's initiative, Riku went for the first Sorcerer. His swing was, predictably, deflected by the cube. But it allowed Sora to quickly get in a string of hits on the Nobody. Which, paired with the damage Isa had already done, finished that one off.

The pair of Keybearers flanked Isa, facing the second Sorcerer. "You okay?" Riku asked, glancing quickly from the Nobody to Isa.

"I'm _fine_," Isa snapped, forcing down his fatigue. As if to prove it, he lunged in for a strike, battering the Nobody back. He was too slow to avoid a reprisal, getting knocked backward a few feet by an errant cube. His eyes snapped back to the Sorcerer.

Unacceptable.

Isa snarled, ignoring Riku and Sora's cries of concern to leap inside the Sorcerer's guard. A single blow sliced cleanly through the Nobody. But the effort left him winded. He leaned on his Claymore to catch his breath, now that the platform was clear. It was _unacceptable_, how tired he was._ Intolerable_.

With the brief battle done, Sora went right over to Isa, not at all convinced that he was fine. Riku, however, hung back a bit, watching the pair and thinking over something.

"I'm not sure you _are _fine, Isa." Sora insisted, hovering by his side. "You aren't usually this tired after a fight. Especially not such a short one." He hesitated, then frowned a little, obviously concerned. "Actually, I don't think I've _ever _seen you tired after a fight."

"I _said _I'm _fine_." Isa almost growled. He straightened, glancing towards the others as they caught up. He shouldered his Claymore and turned towards the next blue-stripped edge without looking at Sora.

"Let's move on."

"Isa-"

Riku stopped Sora before he even got started, putting a hand on shoulder and giving him a look that clearly said 'Let it go.' Sora sighed, relenting. "Okay, fine. I guess we do need to hurry."

After all, if Isa was still having trouble after the next fight, then they could step in and insist on a quick rest stop. But until then, the bickering would just distract and slow them down.

With that, they hurried after Isa. Once he was sure he was standing in front of that blue strip, Sora walked onto the next bridge without a second thought. Neither Riku or Kairi were quite as keen about the need to step out into what seemed to be nothingness.

Another platform, and more Nobodies. Isa was clearly struggling, but he refused to back down. Still, with Isa having so much trouble, Sora and Riku found themselves doing most of the fighting. There were several more Sorcerers on this platform than there had been on the last, which made things a little more tricky, but they managed. The tactic of tag-teaming the Nobodies one at a time, one person attacking to create the needed opening while the other got the hits in, was working rather well.

Though without the full extent of Isa's help, it took longer than it would have otherwise. And, perhaps, things didn't go quite as smoothly. Both Sora and Riku suffered a few minor injuries, but nothing that would potentially slow them down.

The moment the last Sorcerer went down, Sora and Riku turned on Isa. Despite himself, the blue-haired man had had to sit on the edge of a raised area of the platform to catch his breath. Sora and Riku glanced at each other, then back to the Berserker. "Isa, we're stopping just long enough for you to get a break." The latter said, dismissing his Keyblade and crossing his arms. "You keep saying that you're fine, but you clearly aren't."

"It doesn't have to be for long, either." Sora added, carefully positioned between Isa and the next blue-stripped edge. "Just ten minutes or so."

Isa glared up at them, pushing himself to his feet. "We don't have ten minutes."

Sora shrugged, swinging his Keyblade up and resting it on his shoulder. "Maybe you're right. Maybe we don't have ten minutes. That just means we'll have to move a little faster to make up for the lost time." He gave Isa a level look. "Which is better than the alternative of you passing out from exhaustion. Because no matter what you say, Isa, you are _not _fine."

Isa grit his teeth with frustration; it was true, he was only slowing them down. On any other day, in any other situation, he would have made a tactical retreat; taken Kairi and found a relatively safe place to hunker down so that Sora and Riku could focus on fighting instead of protecting the weaker elements. But this was too personal and Isa had lost too much.

"I am not going to pass out," he ground out through clenched teeth. "We need to keep moving."

"Absolutely not." Riku replied quickly. "You're going to sit back down, and you're going to stay there until we've decided that you're rested enough to continue."

Isa stared at him for a moment. Had he really- Isa's shoulders hunched as he loomed over the boys.

"You are a _child_. _You_ will_ not _order me around."

Neither of them wavered in the slightest, both preferring to stare Isa down instead. They weren't going to back down on this point, either. Isa was going to take a break, like it or not, if they had even the slightest say in the matter.

However, it was Sora, not Riku, that replied. "If we have to order you around for your own good, then we damned well will. We're not above forcing our friends to do something for their own good, Isa."

Isa snarled in frustration, throwing one arm wide. "We do _not have time for this!" _he snapped. "Who knows what-"

But Isa was cut off by a gasp, as Kairi cried out behind him. He whipped around to see her pointing, horrified, towards the walls, and followed her gaze to see legions of Shadows pouring in through the windows. Isa's breath caught in his throat.

_-outside the window, the Shadows were everywhere, people were screaming and dying in the streets as Cid grabbed him and forced him towards the basement-_

Isa shook his head violently to snap himself out of it. "Run!" he snarled at the girl, gesturing towards the next platform. Whether it was the adrenaline, or something else, Isa found himself with a sudden burst of strength, enough to lift his Claymore without much trouble.

Unlike Riku and Sora, Kairi needed no convincing or to be told a second time to make for the bridge. The King, Donald and Goofy hurried to the next platform with her, to fight off the Nobodies that showed up and keep her safe. She may have a Keyblade, but it was brand new and she was still largely defenseless. In a battle this size, Kairi wouldn't be able to hold her own.

On the other hand, Sora and Riku stayed right there with Isa, Keyblades suddenly out and ready to fight. "Well," Sora gave a laugh that was almost uneasy, "That's a lot of Heartless." Shadows or no, Heartless were still Heartless. Even the weakest ones could overwhelm people like the three of them, given the numbers. And the number of Shadows pouring in from the windows was far from small.

Isa's grip on his claymore was painfully tight, his knuckles going white. His fear was- well, not irrational, but something he should be past by now. He wouldn't let it hold him back.

"Even so, we will have to make a stand."

"Of course!" Sora glanced over at Isa and flashed him a grin.

Riku smiled slightly, readjusting his hold on the Keyblade. "Wouldn't have it any other way."

Isa nodded, bracing himself for the onslaught- but he staggered back as green flames suddenly shot up in front of him and the two Keybearers. Irrational hope leapt in his heart for just an instant at the sight of the flames- which died almost as quickly when an older woman appeared from within them, flanked by a huge, bipedal dog. Beside him, Sora and Riku reeled back to stare. Riku in particular looked extremely uncomfortable. Isa felt like he was missing something.

"Who-"

"Begone from here!" The woman cut him off, waving a hand in the air for emphasis. "Leave these creatures to us!"

Her companion, though, seemed less than enthusiastic. "But there's no way we can take 'em all!" he protested.

"I will be sending _them_ after Xemnas," the woman replied, sneering. "Or perhaps you would rather fight them yourself?"

Mickey had suddenly run back down to join them, and Isa had heard enough. This woman didn't seem to be a friend, so if she was willing to hold off the Heartless, Isa was content to let her do it. Kairi was the one who needed assistance now.

Now unimpeded, Isa headed up to the final platform. The others had already done the bulk of the work weakening the last of the Sorcerers, and Isa found it less difficult than he'd anticipated to finish them off. The adrenaline must not have worn off yet, he supposed. He turned to the girl.

"Are you alright?"

Still expecting everyone to be occupied with the Heartless, Kairi started when Isa showed up and finished off the Nobodies.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks for the help, Isa." She gave a small smile. "Why aren't you with the others?" A simple question, asked out of honest curiosity.

Isa raised one eyebrow. "You needed help, and things down there seem to be under control for the moment." He turned his head as Sora, Riku, and the King made their way up the bridge.

"Are we ready, then?"

Sora spoke up before either Riku or the King could. And since Riku was looking a little subdued at the moment, that was probably for the best. "Yup, we're all ready."

"Then let's go."

oOo 0 oOo 0 oOo 0 oOo

Through a door and up a short set of stairs, and they had finally reached their destination. The very top of the castle; and Xemnas. The silver-haired Nobody didn't bother to turn towards the group as they arrived, his arms raised towards the ruined moon.

"Ohh, my Kingdom Hearts...ruined," he moaned. "Now...I'll have to start all over again."

Xemnas let his arms fall to his sides. He turned to the Keybearers at the head of the group, throwing his arms wide. "Warriors of the Keyblade!" he cried, gesturing to them. "Go forth, and bring me more hearts!"

"No!" As one, Sora, Riku, and Mickey summoned their Keyblades. But Isa couldn't contain himself. With a snarl, he started to lunge towards the Nobody.

"Isa, don't-!"

Riku dropped his Keyblade and lunged after Isa. He grabbed his arm tightly and forcefully pulled him back, kicking at the back of his knee so Isa was forced to the floor as he did so. It was a little awkward to get the Claymore out of his hand from that angle, but Riku managed. He wouldn't be able to use his Keyblade, either, if it came to it.

But that was a small price to pay if it meant Isa was restrained and couldn't get himself killed.

Isa tried to wrench away from Riku, but his muscles were still too tired. With his arm twisted up behind his back, he couldn't break free without forcing his way up, and brute force tactics didn't do much good when one's physical power was tapped out. If he weren't so tired, there was no way Riku would be able to hold him. Isa gave a snarl of frustration, and a weak burst of Darkness flared out of him, then immediately petered out. Isa froze, startled.

The sudden burst of Darkness, however weak, surprised Riku as well. And for a moment he was torn between keeping his eye on Xemnas, and staring at Isa in confusion. Both of them were supposed to be free from the Darkness, so how-

... Not important. They could figure out what that was and deal with it later.

Realizing that something wasn't quite right, Sora shot Riku a questioning look and glanced between him and Isa. Riku just shook his head slightly. It wasn't important right now, and Sora seemed to get that. So instead, both turned their attention (or, most of it, in Riku's case) back to Xemnas.

The silver-haired Nobody watched Isa and Riku's struggle impassively.

"Denizens of light. Answer this; some of your number choose to use Darkness when it suits them. " His eyes rested momentarily on Riku and Isa, before gliding to Sora and Mickey. "Why, then, do you hate the Darkness?"

"Aw, we don't _hate_ it." Mickey lowered his Keyblade to speak. "It's just kinda...scary. But the world's made of light _and _darkness. You can't have one without the other, 'cause darkness is half of everything." The King frowned, glancing down thoughtfully. "...sorta makes you wonder why we _are_ scared of the dark."

Neither Sora or Riku so much as blinked. "It's because of who's lurking inside it," Riku stated, keeping his eyes on Xemnas.

Xemnas extended a beckoning hand toward the group. "Then allow me another question. You accept the Darkness, yet choose to live in the Light. So why do you loathe us who teeter on the edge of nothing? We, who were turned away by both light _and_ dark- never given a choice?" Xemnas put on a sad face, eyebrows knitting and edges of lips turning down, but his voice was utterly flat. Everything about his expression screamed insincerity. It infuriated Isa.

"_You_ deserve no sympathy!" he snarled, trying to twist free of Riku's grasp and ignoring the pain it caused him. "You have been destroying lives since _long_ before you had the _excuse_ of heartlessness!"

"That may be. And yet, have we not paid sufficient price for our hubris?" Xemnas reached a pleading hand towards Isa. "Surely _you_ understand the torment we have suffered?"

"Just give it a rest!" Sora jabbed his Keyblade in Xemnas' direction. "You're Nobodies! You don't even exist! You're not sad about anything!" But Xemnas only laughed.

"Very good. You don't miss a thing. I cannot feel- sorrow. No matter what misery befalls the worlds. No matter what you think, what you feel...or how you exist." With his last few words, the tone of Xemnas' voice turned suddenly from empty to threatening, and the group tensed as one as Xemnas threw his arms into the air. The floor under their feet glowed blue, points of light filling the air around them. Then a burst of light, blindingly bright, and when it cleared, both Xemnas and Sora were nowhere to be seen.

Riku had to waste a few seconds blinking the light from his vision. And when he could finally see again, and could see that both Sora and Xemnas were missing, he released Isa with a sharp intake of breath. "Sora-!"

As one, both he and Kairi took a startled step towards where Sora had been. Isa lunged to his feet, immediately whipping around to check behind them for any sign of Sora or the Nobody.

"Where-" How did this keep happening? First while he'd been fighting Xigbar, and now-

"I don't know, and I don't like it." And considering that it was probably so Xemnas could fight Sora without anyone else interfering... Riku turned on his heel and hurried over to the edge of the Altar. They weren't here, but hopefully they were somewhere nearby. "Sora!"

Kairi hovered around the point where Sora had been standing for a few minutes, not sure what she should be doing. Then, following Riku's lead, Kairi raced over to an edge. "Sora! Where are you?"

While everyone was helping to look by this point, no one was quite as vocal as Riku and Kairi. The former called out again, "Sora! Answer me!"

An odd noise from behind them. They turned around just in time to see something that could almost be a dark portal open a few feet from the ground, staying open just long enough for (a slightly battered) Sora to fall out and land roughly on the tile.

Riku and Kairi were the first to bolt to him, getting to his side just as he was pushing himself up onto his hands and knees, then scrambling to his feet.

"You're okay!" Mickey cried, as Isa let out a relieved sigh. Sora glanced around him with a frown.

"Where's Xemnas?"

A squack from Donald drew everyone's attention. Isa followed his gaze up to the ruined moon; he gasped, lunging up to the edge of the platform nearest to Kingdom Hearts.

"Xemnas!" he snarled at the Nobody, hovering within the hole in the great moon. Xemnas raised his arms, his coat flapping in the wind that swirled around him.

"Hear me, Kingdom Hearts!" he cried. "It seems we must begin anew. Ah, but know this. I will give to you as many hearts as it takes. Mark my words! You can no more be complete without me than I without you. Heed me, Kingdom Hearts! Lend me your power, so that we may be complete!" Xemnas lowered his hands to his chest, fingers clawing at the air. "The power to erase the _fools _that hinder us!"

"Xemnas! No!" Mickey leapt in the air, hand outstretched, as though he could stop Xemnas if only he could reach him.

"Hearts quivering with hatred..." Xemnas let one hand drop, stretching the other before him.

"Xemnas! Don't!" Sora shook his head, lunging forward on the platform.

"Hearts burning with rage..." Xemnas' left arm rose to match his right.

"You'll never win!" Donald stomped his foot as he snapped.

"Hearts scarred by envy..." Xemnas turned away from the Altar. "That_ fool_ Ansem said the heart's true nature was beyond his understanding. But it's not beyond mine! Hearts are the source of all power!" He threw his arms into the air, his body beginning to glow as the wind around him increased in force. A blinding light flared from within the moon, and once again, Xemnas vanished with the light.

"Where'd he go?" Sora quickly glanced around the Alter, then he took a step forward, glaring at the moon. "Xemnas!" He snarled, "You can't hide from us!"

"We're not gonna let him get away now!" Mickey asserted, turning to the two boys.

"No, we will not." Isa growled. "We'll find him." A quick glance around revealed no hint of Xemnas' whereabouts, but Isa doubted that would last long. And he was right; as he looked back towards Kingdom Hearts, the very air itself shimmered and warped. Kairi must have seen it at the same time Isa did, as she gasped and pointed towards the great door that appeared in midair.

"Look at that!"

Both Riku and Sora's heads turned sharply at Kairi's exclamation. At once, they hurried to the edge closest to the giant, floating door. Goofy was the first to question the strange appearance. "What's goin' on?"

"Kingdom Hearts." Mickey explained shortly, staring up at the door.

A door that lead into Kingdom Hearts itself... After a moment, Riku spoke up. "Let's go. Xemnas must be inside."

Mickey nodded. "The worlds gave us this doorway." That explanation wasn't much clearer than the one he had given just seconds before. "They want us to be the guardians of their destiny."

Sora made a quiet noise of agreement, brow furrowed slightly as he looked up at the doorway. It looked vaguely familiar, almost like the Door that Riku, the King and himself had closed. And yet, not quite...

Riku interrupted his train of thought. "Once we go through, there's no turning back. It's victory... or oblivion. So," He turned to the rest of the group, "Are you ready?"

Victory or oblivion. Heh. It was fighting Ansem all over again.

Sora was quiet for a long moment, then nodded. "... Yeah. Let's do this."

Isa nodded as well. To be frank, either result was fine with him, as far as he himself was concerned. "I am more than ready to put an end to this."

That was all the agreement that was needed. Sora, Riku and the King all stepped forward and summoned their Keyblades. As one, they raised the Keyblades. Three beams of light shot up, hitting the door dead on and unlocking it. They waited a moment, then lowered their hands as the doors opened and a shimmering bridge appeared.

Scowling, Sora took a step forward. "Get ready, Xemnas. It all ends here!"

With that, the group walked through the door and into the warped version of The World That Never Was that awaited them. A huge, living castle loomed over the twisted world. And in the distance, atop the castle, stood Xemnas.

"So...it seems your hearts have led you to obliteration. Perhaps it doesn't pay to be too loyal to one's heart. I will have to be sure and remember that." With only a simple hand-gesture, Xemnas sent an entire building flying at the group. In an instant, Isa had grabbed Kairi around the waist, lunging for the door to get her clear of the falling rubble. He cleared the door just as the building slammed into the ground. The shockwave nearly knocked him over, and he barely avoided dropping the princess. The King was less lucky, sprawling on his face next to the Berserker. Isa set Kairi on her feet and turned around to head back through the door- only to see it closing, Sora and Riku just getting to their feet on the other side, Donald and Goofy beside them.

"No!" Isa and Mickey cried at the same time, both lunging for the closing door- but too slow. It slammed shut with a heavy thud, trapping the four with Xemnas and leaving Isa, Mickey, and Kairi on the Altar. Isa slammed the side of his fist against the door with a snarl.

"...what are we going to do...?" Kairi said softly. The distress and worry were clear in her voice.

"We'll just have to trust Sora and Riku." Mickey said. "If anyone can defeat Xemnas, it's those two."

Isa let his fist drop. Mickey was right; but that didn't make him feel any less useless.

_It's just as well. You'd only be in their way as you are now, anyway_, said a little voice in his head. Isa couldn't even dismiss it. It was true. After everything he'd gone through, everything he'd worked for and sacrificed, Isa couldn't do a single thing against Xemnas.

Isa moved over to the top of the stairs. It wasn't much, but with nothing else to do but wait...at least here he felt like he was serving a purpose, guarding the top of the stairs in case any Heartless made it past that strange woman.

oOo 0 oOo 0 oOo 0 oOo

The wait seemed interminable. After what seemed like hours (but was likely only twenty or thirty minutes), another bright light washed across the Altar of Naught. Kairi and Mickey threw their arms up to shield their eyes. But Isa had been facing away from Kingdom Hearts, so as he whipped around, he was the first to see Sora and the others reappear just in front of Kairi, Mickey and himself. Mickey rubbed his eyes clear, gasping.

"You're back!"

"Not alone." Isa growled.

Kairi gave a cry of distress. "Riku, Sora!" But judging from the state Xemnas was in, she probably didn't have anything to worry about.

Xemnas was clearly wobbling, barely standing. He staggered, then fell to one knee. His breath was coming out in audible gasps, the Nobody clutching his chest as he wheezed. His eyes never left the floor. Isa watched him in silence. He was...pathetic. Isa felt no triumph.

"I need...more rage..." the Nobody wheezed out. "I need...more..._hearts_..."

Sora paused, surprised. After a moment, he lowered his Keyblade, scowling. "Xemnas... there's more to a heart than just anger or hate." The scowl turned into a frown that was almost distressed on behalf of the Nobody. "It's full of all kinds of feelings." His tone became sad. "Don't you remember?"

The Nobody paused, frowning. Then, slowly, he raised his eyes to meet Sora's.

"...Unfortunately..." he said slowly, as Darkness swirled around him, enveloping him, "...I don't." The words lingered behind him as Xemnas vanished into the Darkness.

There was a tense moment where Sora expected Xemnas to return. Then, when it was clear that he was gone, he turned to his friends, grinning. While everyone else cheered with relief, Riku and Isa stayed quiet. Mickey smiled widely. "Gosh, you all did great!"

Quietly, both Isa and Riku turned and walked away from the group. Isa moved to stand over the spot where Xemnas had disappeared, frowning softly. After all that buildup, the last of the Apprentices had gone with barely a whimper. It was so anticlimactic. Isa felt...cheated.

For his part, Riku moved in the opposite direction, standing by himself and looking out over the silent city. Sora watched them walk away, then followed after Riku, stopping a foot or so behind him. "Riku... You're coming back with us... Right?"

Riku gave an inaudible sigh, head rising and falling. When he answered, he didn't turn around to face his friend. "I had given into the Darkness."

"Riku!"

"How am I going to face everyone?" He demanded, curling one hand into a fist and spinning around to face Sora. Who was, of course, entirely unswayed by his friend's source of distress.

Instead, he crossed his eyes and smushed his cheeks in with the palms of his hands. "Like this!"

Riku faltered. He hadn't been expecting that kind of response and, despite himself, could help but burst out laughing. The moment didn't last long, though. All at once, the floor rocked beneath them. Well, this was bad. The world was falling apart, and their two forms of escape were currently sans Darkness.

Isa ran to join the others beside the boys.

"We need to leave."

Riku nodded. "Agreed. But how?"

Donald frowned, looking between the two. "Why don't you or Isa just open a portal?"

It was hard to not snap at the duck. "Our Darkness is gone, Donald. We can't make one."

"Well then, how do we get out of here?"

Isa scowled. There'd been that little burst earlier. Maybe... Isa tried to reach into himself, to the place where his Darkness had been. To his surprise, he felt a stir of...something. But not enough to form a portal. Not _nearly_ enough.

Movement on the other side of the Altar caught his eye. Isa's head snapped to look in that direction, but he had not been prepared to see Namine standing there, translucent as a ghost. His first thought was that he must be hallucinating, but a glance at the others made it clear that the trio could see her, as well. Namine smiled softly, then turned and reached a hand out, and a portal snaked open in front of her.

Mickey, Donald, and Goofy, though, were obviously unable to see her, as the King and Donald ran right through Namine's image to examine the portal. The girl's image blinked out when it was disturbed, but neither noticed.

"Who did this?" Donald asked.

"I'm not sure, but we'd better hurry and get through!"

Isa was almost knocked over when a strange dog came barreling up the stairs between him and Kairi. The dog charged at Mickey, barking madly and circling the King and Donald, before diving fearlessly into the portal. Goofy was only steps behind, charging between the two.

"Wait for me!" The King blinked and shrugged, heading through the portal himself. Donald turned to stomp at Sora and the others.

"C'mon!" Without waiting for a response, he turned and ran through the portal as well. And the moment he was gone, Namine reappeared, smiling warmly at her Somebody and her friends.

Both Kairi and Sora approached her, the former smiling and the latter looking a little unsure. Riku, meanwhile, hung back a bit. Kairi stopped opposite Namine, her smile just as warm as her Nobody's. "Thank you, Namine."

Namine nodded. "Sure." Then, she turned to Sora, her smile widening ever so slightly.

"See? We meet again. Just like we promised."

That just served to confuse Sora even more. Which, really, wasn't all that hard at the best of times. "Huh?"

Then there was another voice, one that was definitely not Sora, speaking from nowhere. "You said we'd meet again. But when we did..." Roxas, dressed in the clothes he wore during his time in Twilight Town and just as ghostly as Namine, stepped out of Sora. Who stumbled back several steps and gave a cry of surprise. "... We might not recognize each other." Roxas finished.

"I did, didn't I?"

"But I knew you."

Namine tilted her head, her smile a bit sad. "It's strange."

"I think I understand." Roxas paused for a moment, gathering his thoughts. "I see myself the way you remember me," then he pulled his hands up to his chest, "and you see yourself the way I remember you."

Isa frowned softly. This must be Roxas, he realized now. Maybe that was why he seemed so...strangely familiar. It must be his resemblance to Sora, that was all. But he had no business watching this reunion. As quietly and unobtrusively as he could, Isa made to slip through the portal ahead of the others.

From where he stood, Roxas could see him trying to slip away. And for a moment, he almost let him leave quietly and without being seen. But Roxas had something he had to say.

"Isa, wait-" Isa stopped right where he was, glancing over his shoulder at the boy. Roxas turned fully away from Namine and took a step towards Isa, then he paused. "Before you go, I just..." For a split second, it looked like he was going to crack. Then he was fine. "Thanks for taking care of that idiot."

For just a moment, Isa looked like he was fighting to keep his expression flat. Then he turned his face away. A long moment of silence passed, and then Isa stepped into the portal without a word.

No reply. But Roxas had been kind of expecting that. Axel's death wasn't anything either of them particularly wanted to dwell on, and it must have been so much more painful for Isa than it had been for Roxas. He watched Isa's back for a little longer, then slowly turned back to Namine. She was watching the portal with sad eyes. She cast her eyes down to the floor, one hand coming up to close over her chest.

She hadn't seen what happened to Axel with her own eyes, but seeing it through Sora and Isa's was much, much worse. For all his struggling, in the end he hadn't been able to escape his fate. The fate that awaited all Nobodies. Except...

"...I always thought Nobodies were doomed...to fade back into Darkness."

Roxas sharply averted his eyes and stared at a random point on the floor. "They are. Every Nobody is doomed to return to the Darkness. Unless they happen to be an anomaly and exist alongside their Somebody." His hands curled into tight fists at his sides. "Then they just get turned back into who they're supposed to be, regardless of whether or not that's who they are anymore." Roxas had been trying so very hard to keep his voice steady. But at the very end, it cracked and bitter anger leaked into his tone. "I almost envy him."

Namine looked up, into Roxas's face.

"...I think Axel would be furious to hear a thing like that."

He froze, a guilty look flashing across his face. "... I don't care." But oh Kingdom Hearts, he did. "It's true. I'd rather fade into the Darkness then go back to-" Roxas shot a look to the side that was clearly meant to be aimed at Sora, without actually turning to look at him. "_Him._ Then, at least, I'd die as myself."

Namine let her eyes fall. "I don't think you really mean that. I know you think you do. But if you were to fade..." she raised her eyes again. "...what would that mean to the friends who cared about you?"

Finally, Roxas looked back up at Namine, meeting her eyes. "Almost all my friends are dead. Or," with a pang, his friends from the Digital Twilight Town came to mind, "They never actually existed. Present company excluded, I don't think it would mean anything to them."

Namine shook her head. "I would have agreed with you, once. But now..." She paused, collecting her thoughts. "...even if they weren't supposed to exist, they still affected you. They still changed things. That made them real. It makes us real." Her eyes were pleading, begging him to understand. "Even if you go back, it won't change who you are. It'll only make you whole."

"_Him_. It'll make him whole. I'll just... cease to exist." Roxas looked away again, but only for a moment. "Why should I give up my life just so he can be complete? What makes me owe him that?"

"But you won't cease to exist." Namine reached to take his hand. "Please trust me. You won't lose who you are. And..." she paused, not sure if she should say these words, but...

"...you should think about who needs you most. And where you belong."

When she said that, Roxas almost drew back, almost pulled his hand out of hers. But she was just trying to help him, and he knew that. So he settled for glaring at her instead. And... she did have a point. Besides; he had gotten this far by trusting what she told him. Stopping now wouldn't get him anything.

Gradually, his glare turned half-hearted, then faded to a frown. Then, shortly, it turned into no more than a crestfallen expression. Roxas sighed, closing his eyes as he did so.

"... Fine."

Namine smiled then, a smile filled with relief. "It'll be okay. You'll see. And you won't be alone; I'll be there, too. Whenever Sora and Kairi are together."

Kairi smiled as well. "We'll be together every day; you'll see." She reassured them, then glanced to her side. "Right, Sora?"

Sora, who had been adamantly trying to ignore their conversation, started and turned looked over at her. "Uh- yeah!" He nodded, putting his hands on his hips. Roxas, who had looked over his shoulder to see the two, almost smiled. But the two of them were really just too happy for his mood right now. Namine, though, let go of Roxas' hand to turn to Kairi. Her Somebody held her hand out, and Namine took it, dissolving into Kairi with her smile still on her face.

Sora watched the whole thing with startled amazement. Then Roxas turned around and walked, coming to a stop in front of him. "Pay attention!" Sora jumped, turning to face Roxas. "I'm only going to say this once." Roxas frowned lightly, arms crossed and staring at his Somebody. "I still don't approve of some of the things you did. But..." He petered off and looked away, rubbing the back of his neck. After a moment, he looked back up at Sora.

"I guess you aren't half bad."

It was the closest the two were going to get to making amends.

Roxas took a moment to steady himself, then closed his eyes and tipped his head back as he started to fade away into white light. Sora followed his lead and closed his eyes. For a brief moment, he glowed a soft blue as his Nobody returned to him. Then Roxas and the light were gone.

Sora opened his eyes and alternated between patting himself and staring at his hands in confusion. "H-huh?"

Finally rejoining the two, Riku walked up beside Sora and gave him a smile. "Don't worry. You're all still you."

"Hey!" Kairi, who had moved over to the portal, called, grabbing their attention. "... Let's go home."

The smile Sora made at those words could have melted even Maleficent's heart. He turned that grin on Riku. "Riku, c'mon."

Riku nodded. "Yeah." For the first time probably a long while, his own smile hadn't wavered in the slightest.

The two of them started toward the portal, with Kairi going into it ahead of them. Then all at once she stopped and turned around, visibly distressed. And for good reason- the portal was starting to close.

Riku and Sora rushed forward as Kairi reached out a hand- "Sora! Riku!"- but it was too little, too late.

The portal closed around her, and a distressed Kairi appeared in the Corridor with the others. Minus Sora and Riku, who were now trapped on The World That Never Was. Isa was the first to react, rushing up to Kairi.

"Where are the others?" he demanded.

"Back there, on the Castle." She explained, looking absolutely terrified for her friends, "They tried to get to the portal in time, but it just closed so fast-" She cut herself off, helplessly looking back over at where the entrance of the portal had been moments before.

Isa stared at her in horror for a moment before his eyes snapped to the spot too. No. No way, they _couldn't_ have been left behind. There must be something he could do, _something_- Isa reached out a hand, digging as deep as he could for the Darkness he'd need to open a new portal back to the castle. But though he felt it stirring, deep within him, it wasn't enough. It _wasn't enough._

Isa's extended hand clenched into a fist, falling to his side.

Whenever it mattered, _he couldn't do anything._

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Five people sat in silence, gazing out across a clear, tropical ocean. None of the five wanted to disturb the quiet; all were preoccupied by the two boys missing from their number.

Isa tried not to think about what was happening to them. There was nothing he could do now; not that that was a new feeling to him. But he was becoming more and more sure that Riku had been wrong. Each time he reached for that tiny stir of Darkness within him, it felt stronger. Maybe he'd be able to form a portal soon, and go find the boys.

Maybe he'd be too late.

Don't think about that. Isa couldn't let himself think that. He cared about both of those boys; they were his friends. Losing them in the same day as losing Lea- he couldn't fathom it. But here, in the safety of the Destiny Islands and with no one left to fight, Isa was having a difficult time not thinking about what he'd lost. He had nothing to distract himself from the pain.

A flash from high above them caught Isa's eye, and he looked up to see two somethings streaking out of the sky and crashing into the waves. He stood up with all of the others to see what it was-

Sora and Riku's heads popped out of the water, and Isa nearly had a heart attack with relief. Kairi was shouting and waving, and the others were charging into the water to meet the boys.

Isa smiled softly, turning to walk away quietly. He was glad they were safe, and home, and with their loved ones. But Isa really had no place there. Instead, he made his way to the little island that jutted out of the sea, sitting on a curved tree trunk that made a convenient seat. He looked out over the water and let his mind shut down.

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It was so impossibly _wonderful_ to be back on Destiny Islands.

Nothing looked any different then it had almost two years ago. It was almost surreal, after everything they had been through. Like it had all been a dream. If it hadn't been for the group of odd people they called their friends that rushed to greet them, Riku and Sora might have been half convinced that it _was_ all just some crazy dream.

They were hurried from the water onto the sand, pestered for questions and reassurances that they were okay every step of the way. Riku didn't mention that he'd gotten injured, and Sora didn't bring it up either. If Riku wasn't asking after a heal, maybe it wasn't as bad as it had seemed in the heat of battle. Maybe it didn't hurt. He'd bother Riku about it later.

Minutes turned into hours, and several of those later Riku realized that Isa wasn't part of the group.

His chest and side where he had taken some hits for Sora _hurt_. Riku knew he should let Donald or Sora or someone cast a Cure, but he'd live. The wounds and people who could see to them would be there later. Right now, he wanted to check on Isa and talk to him properly.

Riku quietly slipped away, something he was all too used to doing. By the time someone (Mickey) noticed he wasn't a part of the group anymore, Riku was half almost to the island. Mickey just smiled, turning back to the conversation, intent on keeping them distracted so Riku and Isa could talk in peace.

It didn't take long to reach that small island. A couple of minutes later and he was walking across the sand and had reached the curved tree. Usually he would sit on or lean against the tree trunk. But neither hauling himself on to it nor standing sounded appealing. So he just sat down on the warm sand and leaned back against it with a sigh.

A minute or so later, he tilted his head up to look at Isa. "How're you holding up?"

Isa didn't answer Riku at first. He didn't really want to talk about Lea. He _definitely_ didn't want to talk about his feelings. But he was glad Riku was there; it lessened the burden just a bit, knowing there was even one other person who had known Lea. Someone who cared, even just a little, that he was gone. He knew Roxas would care, and Namine. But they were gone, too, in a way.

Isa glanced out towards the beach, where Kairi and Sora sat together in the sand. He wondered what it was like, to be absorbed into another person. It seemed like Roxas and Namine had been different from Lea and the other Nobodies. They'd been separate existences from their original people, living their own lives and forming their own bonds apart from their Somebodies. He wondered if going back was scary, or if it felt like going home.

"...do you think they'll be alright?" Isa finally broke the silence, still looking at the pair on the beach. "Namine and Roxas, that is."

"I think they will." Riku glanced over at them for a moment, then looked back out to sea. If Isa didn't feel like talking about Lea right now, Riku wasn't going to push it. "Both of them are different from Sora and Kairi, almost drastically so, but I think they'll be fine."

"...that's good." Isa nodded a bit. "...I wouldn't want either of them to be in pain."

Isa's thoughts turned then to his own situation. What he was going to do, from here onward. He guessed he was going home...and then what? Well, there had been something he'd been thinking about, as they waited for Sora and Riku.

"...the Heartless really are pitiful creatures, aren't they...? Mindlessly lusting after hearts." He frowned softly, speaking without looking at Riku. "But...the Keyblade releases those hearts, correct? Lea once told me that's what they needed Roxas for." Somehow Isa managed to speak his friend's name without faltering. He glanced at Riku then.

"If a Heartless is defeated by a Keyblade...the heart will be free. That is my understanding... have I got the right of it?"

It was Riku's turn to nod. "That's exactly it. A Keyblade frees the heart from darkness when the Heartless is defeated."

Isa let out a soft sigh. "...well, at least there's that much." He had a purpose, then. Something he had to do. But...

"...do you know of a way to tell who a Heartless belongs to?" That was important; Isa didn't have a Keyblade himself. He knew that there had been cells in the castle that had contained Heartless, so there must be a way to capture one. But, which one? How would he know he had the right Heartless...?

"I don't, unfortunately. Heartless... well, they're hard to figure out." Riku frowned slightly as he thought. "They don't seem to attack people they knew, though. Sora's refused to attack Donald, Goofy and Kairi, even when provoked. And come to think of it, Kairi recognized who it was. But whether that always happens or if it was just a fluke, I couldn't say."

He knew why Isa was asking about this. It wasn't hard, really, to connect the dots. Riku truly wanted to help him with this, but... there just wasn't much known about the hearts of Heartless. Or how to figure out who they once were.

Isa looked away from Riku, then, staring off towards the sunset. Maybe he would recognize him. Maybe...

...maybe Lea's heart was still there, at the castle. Maybe it had never left. And Isa had never returned. Not to main part of the castle, only to the computer lab that had gotten shifted away from the rest of the castle in the cataclysm.

But he would find it, somehow. Lea's heart had been lost in Darkness for a long time. It wasn't right; that wasn't who Lea had been. Isa didn't want his heart to suffer any longer.

Isa slid off the tree trunk, picking up the coat he had shed in the tropical heat. He just held it for a moment, feeling the fabric beneath his fingertips. Then, he swung it back on himself. He'd need it, to get through a portal home.

Besides, it suited him. Darkness was where he belonged, after all. The Light's inability to purge it from him proved that.

Riku glanced up when Isa slid off the tree, brow furrowing as he picked up the coat. There wasn't any need for him to wear the coat anymore, not if he wouldn't be travelling through dark portals and couldn't summon them. But that short burst of Darkness, after they'd found Xemnas...

"Isa, wait." Riku pushed himself to his feet. He was quiet for a moment, then continued. "Your Darkness is returning, isn't it?"

Isa paused.

"...yes. I've been regaining my strength bit by bit."

Well, that was a little worrying. "After that burst on the Altar of Naught, I was wondering if you were." He sighed. "It makes sense, in a way. Yours has been with you for so long, it shouldn't be a surprise that it wouldn't be cleared away so easily." Both their Darknesses ran deep and strong, but Isa had had his for most of his life. It was going to be much harder to get rid of than Riku's.

Isa raised a hand to rest over his heart. "...to be honest, I'm glad to have it back. It's a part of me." He turned his head to meet Riku's eyes then. "...probably a part of you, too. It won't be subdued forever."

Riku was almost surprised, and rather wished he could be. Instead, he was just a bit... resigned.

"... Yeah. I don't like the idea, but you're right." Riku agreed, though a little reluctantly. "I've known for a while, I think. I just didn't want to believe it." He paused, and looked over at Sora and Kairi, sitting together on the beach. "The Darkness can take its time coming back. I'm ready for a break."

Isa looked over at Kairi and Sora as well. "...a strong light casts a deep shadow. There's nothing wrong with that." Then, he turned to face Riku completely. "...if that's what it takes to protect your light, don't be afraid to use it. I don't think I need to tell you how precious that light is." Or how easily it could be snuffed out.

He didn't reply right away, instead watching Sora and Kairi for a moment longer. Then Riku turned back to Isa, meeting his eyes with a small smile. "Don't worry, I'll keep it safe. I don't plan on losing sight of my light again. Or on letting them lose theirs." For a second, the smile faltered. "And... I could tell you the same thing. Please be careful, Isa."

Isa glanced away from Riku, unable to completely mask his sad frown. It was too late for that. Much, much too late.

Isa turned away, picking up his Claymore. "...I'll be going now."

So he was leaving, then. It wasn't too surprising. Isa wouldn't be able to stick around their little island forever, not when he had work to do. Still, Riku'd been hoping that it wouldn't be so soon. He could try and talk Isa into staying a little longer, but... no. Sora would try that. _Riku _wasn't going to stand between Isa and what little peace of mind he could get.

With a quiet sigh, Riku nodded. "Good luck, Isa." He didn't need to elaborate on what the good luck was for. "You know where to find us now, if you ever need help."

Isa nodded. "I do." He paused for a moment, and then...

_"Thank you. _Both of you." And that 'thank you' came from the bottom of his heart.

Isa turned away and reached a hand out, a portal snaking open before him. A few steps, and the portal closed behind him.

Isa was going home.


	16. Slipping

A/N: And we're almost at the end! Next chapter will be the last. Thanks to everybody who's stuck with me 'til now. :D

WARNING though; this chapter has some dark/distressing themes, especially towards the end of it. I hope it won't stop you from reading, this close to the end of the story, but please be forewarned.

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A man in a deep black coat stepped from a tear in reality, from a world of warmth and sunlight into a world of eternal night. The cobblestones beneath Isa's feet didn't belong to Hollow Bastion's streets. He would go back to Hollow Bastion soon enough. But Isa couldn't deal with other people yet; especially not the littles. They would be all over him the instant he set foot in the house, touching him and jabbering at him and generally making a commotion over him. That wasn't what he needed right then. So instead, he had come to Traverse Town, where it was dark and silent. Where no one would bother him.

Where he had grown up. And where he had been together with Lea.

Isa pushed open the front door. He could have just portalled into the house but...that hadn't felt right. His steps echoed in the empty room. Alone with his thoughts, Isa could finally try to process everything that had happened that day. Could try to cope with his grief.

His failure.

Lea was gone. He would never see him again. Isa's thoughts kept trailing back to that thought. What good was he? Isa had only needed to protect this one person, the one who had needed it most, and Isa couldn't even do that. What use was he to anyone?

He drifted through the house in a daze, just noticing the little things. A magazine tossed haphazardly on the sofa, a coffee cup left on the table, abandoned still half-full. Little bits and pieces that proved Lea had lived there. That he'd existed.

Isa found himself in his bedroom. His feet had taken him there without thinking about it. He glanced around the room; but Lea had had no personal effects, past what he'd kept on him most of the time. Everything he'd had had disappeared along with him, leaving Isa with nothing to remember him by.

Not that he could ever forget.

Isa drifted over to the bed. His own half was tidy, but Lea's side of it was still messy.

...how long had it been, since Isa had last slept? How long had they been in the World that Never Was? Isa suddenly felt the exhaustion washing over him. He should leave, but-

...instead, Isa lay down on his own side of the bed, letting his arm drape across the indent on the other side. He pressed his face into Lea's pillow; it still smelled like him. The scent would dissipate in time, but for now, this proof of Lea's existence still lingered.

Isa would take what he could get. One last night of comfort before a lifetime of loneliness.

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Three days. Isa had been gone for _three days_. How long could it take for a handful of people to assault a castle? Something must have gone wrong, Leon was sure of it. Otherwise they should have been back by now, right? It couldn't possibly take this long. Leon was having a hard time focusing on his work; he would decode a few lines, and then his thoughts would wander, the worry pulling him away. Something _must_ have gone wro-

Leon's thoughts were interrupted by the distinctive sound of a Dark Portal opening, just outside the house. Everyone had stopped what they were doing at the sound; the first to break the stillness, as usual, was Yuffie. The teenager leapt up and threw open the front door. A pause, and then a shriek of "Isa!" and the rest of the family was up. Aerith hurried out after Yuffie, but Leon stayed standing where he was, still by the computer. Cid raised an eyebrow at Leon.

"He ain't gonna bite ya, y'know."

Leon just scowled. It wasn't like he was afraid. He just-...

...wasn't very honest with himself. He wanted to see Isa, but he-... couldn't quite forget that sense of foreboding, before Isa had left. But that was stupid. He was back, right?

But as Isa and the girls came through the door, it was obvious something was wrong. Yuffie was grinning up a storm, but Isa...wasn't smiling. He wasn't talking. He wasn't even making eye contact with anyone. It was like he barely noticed Yuffie was there. Aerith seemed to have noticed something was off, too; she was hanging back, frowning softly.

Leon had expected more people to enter the house, but...had Isa returned alone? Where was Sora? And...Leon scowled, walking towards the others.

"What happened? That Nobody run off and abandon you or something?"

Isa froze. It was instantly obvious that that had been the wrong thing to say. Even Yuffie suddenly shut up; the tension was palpable in the air. Then Isa lifted his eyes to Leon's, and the _look_ in his eyes was more terrifying than any Leon had ever seen. His voice died in his throat; he couldn't move, couldn't even blink.

"Lea lost his life," Isa slowly informed Leon, in a tone that promised death while pretending to be matter-of-fact, "standing between me and a sniper's bullet."

Then Isa had pulled away from Yuffie, walked straight past Leon and into his bedroom without another word. Leon was left frozen, trembling wide-eyed where he stood.

Leon had seen what Isa was capable of. He'd been in the line of fire for his brother's Berserking more than once. He'd seen the damage Isa could do when he put his mind to it. But Leon had never been _afraid_ of Isa before. Never, before this moment.

That wasn't his brother.

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Having a giant Heartless rampaging through town was a problem, but Leon couldn't help but feel secretly glad for it forcing Isa to spend time with him and Yuffie. Even if that time was spent fighting, it was still more of him than they had seen in weeks. Isa kept vanishing to who-only-knew where; he was usually gone before breakfast, and he often didn't return until late into the night. Even when he was home, he kept to himself. Leon didn't think Isa'd said more than two sentences at a stretch to any one of them since he'd returned home.

But Leon had no time to reflect on that now; he was too busy dodging the Scorching Sphere ricocheting around the courtyard. The Heartless had already been worn down enough to be desperate; but a Blizzard from Yuffie brought it to an abrupt halt. Isa was already lunging in to deliver the finishing blow, so Leon hung back. But then, at the last second-

Somehow, the Heartless had slipped under Isa's guard and slammed its fist into his gut, sending the blue-haired man bouncing across the courtyard. Leon was stunned for a moment, but snapped back to himself the instant the Heartless got up to make for Isa. A single slash was all it took to defeat the Heartless; so how had it managed to get the jump on Isa? Isa was reckless, but not _careless_. It should be impossible, but-

...had Isa..._hesitated?_

Leon hurried over to join Yuffie beside Isa. The older man was doubled over, clutching his stomach and hacking, trying to get his breath back.

"Are you okay?" Leon demanded. "What the hell happened?"

Isa said nothing, turning an annoyed glare on the brunette. Leon glared right back; but before he could open his mouth to say anything else, Aerith was there. She dropped down next to Isa, frowning.

"How bad is it? Let me see."

"Not bad," Isa wheezed out, but he let Aerith push him back upright and tug open his shirt to look. There was already a large purple bruise forming, and the Scorching Sphere had just barely gotten him with its claws, leaving four shallow gashes on his belly. Leon breathed a sigh of relief that it wasn't worse.

Aerith tutted, reaching for the first-aid kit she'd brought with her.

"Off with the shirt. You need a heal and a bandaging, and then a good night's rest."

Isa sighed, but removed his shirt. But then Yuffie, who had been sitting behind Isa, suddenly gasped with horror, lunging up to grab his shoulders.

"Isa! What did you do to your back?"

Leon lunged around to Yuffie's position, and couldn't contain his own gasp. There was an absolutely gigantic scar crossing Isa's entire back, from right shoulder to left hip. And from the look of it, it must have been deep too. That...looked like it had been a seriously life-threatening injury. But Isa seemed completely unconcerned.

"...Sora told you I'd gotten a badge of honor, didn't he?" Isa asked, in a completely matter-of-fact tone.

Leon just stared at him. That wound...for Axel...?

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Two AM, and Leon was still awake. He hadn't seen Isa once in over a week, and he was worried. He wondered if Isa was even coming home at all anymore. So he'd stayed up; he would stay up all night if he had to.

The front door creaked open, and Leon looked up from his coffee. Isa had paused in the doorway, looking both a bit surprised and a bit annoyed that Leon was there. His clothes were scorched and torn.

"...what are you still doing u-"

"Where have you been?" Leon cut Isa off, standing up from the table. "Everybody's worried sick about you."

Isa looked at him in silence for a moment, then turned to head towards his room without a word. Leon nearly growled; he wasn't standing for that. His hand shot out to grab Isa's shoulder.

"Hey, I'm talking to-!"

But Isa whacked Leon's hand away with the back of his own, turning to glare at the brunette.

"You aren't my keeper, Squall." And Isa turned away from him to head down the hallway.

"_Somebody_ has to be!" Leon snapped at his retreating back. "Hey, come back here!"

But Isa ignored Leon, snapping his door shut on the end of Leon's sentence. Leon stared at the door, then he visibly deflated, his eyes dropping to the floor.

"...come back, Isa."

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Another day, another trip into the castle, to fight until he was exhausted and then descend into the computer laboratory to work on the Apprentices' notes. Every day had been like this, ever since Isa had returned to Hollow Bastion. He wasn't even sure how long it had been now. At least two months, he thought. Probably.

It was starting to get late, and Isa had exhausted himself again. It was time to give up for the night. Isa sighed. He was beginning to despair of ever finding Lea's Heartless. What if there was no way to tell, after all? For all Isa knew, he could have killed it a hundred times over without even knowing it, only to have it respawn. He was running himself into the ground, for what could be an impossible task. He was probably just going to end up getting himself killed for nothing. Or worse, losing his heart. But as long as there was a chance...Isa couldn't let it go.

Isa suddenly had the feeling he was being followed. He paused in his steps, eyes narrowing. There was a Heartless trying to sneak up on him, he was pretty sure. All at once, he whipped around, swinging his Claymore in a wide arc behind him.

But the Heartless was only a little Red Nocturne, which spun head over foot out of the way of the sword. Isa scowled and glanced around; Bell Heartless usually attacked in groups. But this one was alone. He watched it for a moment as it bobbed gently, about ten feet away from him. Then, suddenly, it reared back and spat a fireball at him. Isa held his claymore in front of himself to block the attack, but the fireball struck the sword at an odd angle. It glanced off, bouncing over Isa's shoulder and singing his hair, just missing his face. He scowled, starting to lift his Claymore to attack, but-

The Red Nocturne had suddenly started...convulsing in midair, letting out a strange tinkling noise. It was almost as if it was...laughing?

Isa blinked, letting his claymore down just a bit. No, it couldn't...

"...Lea...?"

The Red Nocturne started twirling frantically in place, gleefully bobbing up and down and chiming even more rapidly than before.

Isa let the end of his claymore drop. The little Heartless floated over to him, circling him but not trying to harm him. He hesitated, then reached out a hand, half-expecting to get it fried off. But the Heartless just bumped it playfully instead. Isa hung his head, taking a shaky breath. Then, for the first time since the Castle that Never Was, he smiled.

"...I found you."

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Isa was home at a reasonable hour? In time for dinner, even? Absolutely everyone in the family was surprised when Isa walked in the door just as they were about to start their meal. While Leon and the others stared, Isa quietly took a seat, as though nothing out of the ordinary was happening. Aerith snapped out of it first, getting up to get a portion for Isa.

Cid leaned across the table towards the blue-haired man, raising an eyebrow. "Well, well, look who actually decided t'join us fer once. To what d'we owe the honor of yer esteemed presence?"

But Isa just ignored Cid's sarcasm, calmly cutting into his food.

"I accomplished what I set out to, so I saw no reason not to come have a hot meal for once."

Leon scowled. Isa was the one who wasn't coming home; it was his own fault if he wasn't eating. But Leon kept his mouth shut; he was afraid of driving Isa back off again. Maybe this was a sign that Isa was starting to come to terms with his grief. Maybe...he was almost ready to come home.

The meal progressed in a comfortable near-quiet. Aerith made occasional small talk with Cid and Yuffie. Every once in a while, Isa would almost smirk at something someone had said. It was almost like normal. Leon kept quiet, afraid to break whatever spell was in effect.

But then the meal ended, and Isa got up and started towards the front door. Aerith got up as well, frowning softly.

"Where are you going? It's getting late."

Isa paused, turning towards her. "...to the lab in the castle. I still have some things to do tonight."

"Oh..." Aerith trailed off. Leon scowled, glancing away from the blue-haired man. More work. Naturally. But before Isa could leave, Aerith spoke up again.

"...what is it...you were trying to accomplish?"

If Leon had asked that question, he was sure Isa would have ignored him. So he was surprised when Isa turned towards Aerith.

"I found Lea's Heartless. I've got to go check on it; then I'll be back."

There was dead silence in the room.

Then Leon broke it, leaping to his feet. "You _what?_" The brunette was fuming, furious. "You mean- all this time, you haven't been coming home for...for _that?_"

Leon couldn't believe what he was hearing. Axel was_ dead _and he was _still_ taking Isa away from them.

""Leon, please-" Aerith tried to intervene, but Leon wouldn't have it.

"What the hell is _wrong_ with you?" Leon snarled. "You're keeping it at that castle like...like some kind of _pet?_ Isa, that's _sick!"_

Isa's glare was terrifying to behold, but this time Leon didn't back down. And for once, Isa didn't walk away.

"I am not keeping it "as a pet." Only a Keyblade can free a heart trapped within a Heartless. I do not _have_ a Keyblade. Do you?"

"And what's that supposed to accomplish?" Leon demanded. "You're abandoning your family for...for somebody who's been gone for _ten years!_ Isa, he's _dead!_ Get over it!"

Isa flinched, and the heartbroken look that flitted across his face made Leon regret his words, just for a moment. Then Isa's face hardened, and he stepped out the door without another word, slamming it behind him.

There was silence in the house. Then, Yuffie whirled on Leon, tears in her eyes.

"Look what you did! Idiot!" she snarled, hurrying away from the table.

...well, what was he supposed to do?

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Isa hadn't come back to the house once since the argument over the dinner table. He'd been sleeping in the study off the computer lab, and Aerith had been bringing him meals.

Well, if he wasn't going to come back, Leon was going to have to go find him.

As luck would have it, Isa wasn't working in the lab when Leon reached the castle. Instead, he was sitting at the desk in the study, reading a textbook of some sort. Leon eyed the caged Heartless behind Isa with disgust. Isa was sitting much, much too close to the cage for Leon's comfort. He stood there in silence, waiting for Isa to acknowledge him. But Isa ignored him completely.

The Heartless, on the other hand, noticed Leon and started to get agitated. It bobbed angrily, then tried to spit a fireball at Leon. The brunette went for his gunblade, but the fireball never made it out of the cage. Isa set his book down, scowling.

"Lea, enough."

Leon scowled, too. "...you're calling it 'Lea'? _Seriously?"_

Isa sighed and glanced up at Leon. "...yes, I am, because it responds to it. Now what do you want?"

What did he want? What kind of question was that? "For you to come home! What do you think?" Leon's scowl deepened. "What the hell is your problem? Do you hate us all of a sudden? What the hell did we do to make you reject us like this? Huh? _Answer me!"_

But Isa wasn't answering. He'd turned back to his textbook in the middle of Leon's sentence, carrying on with his reading as if Leon wasn't even there.

"Don't ignore me!" Leon snarled, slamming his hand down on the desk. But that didn't even draw a batted eye.

The bright red creature bobbing in the cage caught Leon's eye. His eyes narrowed as he looked at it.

"...it's this _thing_, isn't it." At that, Isa actually looked up. "It's got some kind of a...a _hold_ on you." Why hadn't Leon seen it before? That was something the Heartless could do, right? They could worm their way into people's Hearts, controlling them, making them do things they normally wouldn't.

Right. It wasn't Isa's fault. It was that _creature. That _was what had changed his brother into this person Leon didn't know.

Leon reached for his gunblade. If he killed the Heartless...

Isa scowled. "Squall, what do you think you're doing?"

"Saving you." Leon made a lunge for the cage-

An arm went around his belly, and Leon found himself flung into a far wall. His head jerked up to see Isa looming, bare-handed, between him and the Heartless. Isa fixed Leon with one of the chilling glares he'd developed recently. He opened his mouth to speak, but Leon beat him to it.

"Don't you see? That thing is controlling you! If you don't turn bac-"

"Get out of here, Leon. I don't want to hear it."

_Leon_. Squall reeled back as if he'd been slapped.

Isa had never called him Leon. Never once, in all the time Squall had been asking him to.

Squall stumbled to his feet, and fled.

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Being back home was good and all, but after nearly two years of constant travel it was difficult for Sora to just sit still in one place. When the letter from King Mickey arrived, it gave him an excuse to get back on the Gummi ship under the pretense of going to Hollow Bastion to say hi to everyone before things got crazy.

Of course, considering that was his entire reason for jumping aboard the Gummi again, it was a pretty awful excuse. He really _did _want to check in, nothing more.

It had taken him even less time then he'd thought it would to get from Destiny Islands to Hollow Bastion. It was like the ship itself was saying "This is where you need to be, quick as you can!" Only a few hours after boarding the ship, Sora landed at the Computer Room in the ruins of the castle. Which was a little odd, since he thought he'd selected the landing point at Cid's house. But the two were fairly close on the console, so his finger must have just slipped.

Isa had been working at the computer console, but he startled badly when he heard someone suddenly behind him. In a flash, Isa had his Claymore in hand and was swinging it-

Wait, it was Sora- Isa stopped the swing of his weapon, letting out a deep breath to calm his nerves.

"...Sora. You shouldn't sneak up on someone like that."

Sora started, right hand twitching to call his Keyblade before he realized who was attacking him, that it was an accident, and that Isa had already stopped. He laughed a little nervously. "Sorry about that, Isa. I wasn't _trying_ to startle you. The Gummi ship dropped me here by accident."

Then he noticed the console screen behind Isa. Sora didn't recognize much on the screen; but then, he'd never been very good with computers. "Whatcha working on?"

"Oh..." Isa glanced up at his notes. He'd finally gotten most of the Apprentices' notes decoded. But it didn't matter now; not now that Sora was here. He leaned over to close his work out, disabling the password protection as he did. "...nothing important."

Isa looked back at Sora then. "...I'm glad you're here. I have a favor to ask of you."

Something about Isa seemed...subdued. Like he had gotten sadder since the last time Sora had seen him, on Destiny Island after the battle. But he couldn't quite put his finger on why, other than Axel's death. And so he put it aside, planning on asking Riku or Leon for their opinion at a later point. Right now, Isa needed his help. "Of course! What can I help you with?"

"Follow me, please."

Isa led the way down the hall, to what had once been Ansem's office. The painting of Xehanort had been gotten rid of, the desk shoved away from the wall. Instead, there was a large cage against the wall, and in that cage floated a single Red Nocturne.

"...This is what I need your help with," Isa said, gesturing to the cage.

The Heartless noticed the two entering the room and came to the side of the cage closest to them. It spun in place for a moment, then spat a fireball in Sora's direction; the fireball, however, hit some kind of invisible barrier before it could pass between the bars, dissipating harmlessly.

Isa walked calmly over to the cage, resting his hand on the metal, utterly fearless. But rather than attacking him, the Heartless calmed down, bobbing pleasantly before him. Isa kept his hands outside the cage but leaned in to speak soothingly to the Heartless.

"...this is my friend Sora. He's going to help you, Lea."

Okay, talking to a Heartless like it was a small child. That... didn't seem right _or _healthy. Something had definitely happened to Isa since last Sora'd seen him.

Sora took a tentative step or two towards the cage. "So how I can help, um, Lea?"

Isa turned to Sora, all seriousness again.

"It's Lea's Heartless. I'd like you to kill it, and free his heart. Your Keyblade can do that, correct?"

Isa frowned then, glancing at the Heartless that bobbed behind the bars of the cage, then back to Sora.

"When you are ready, I'll let it out." His frown deepened a bit. "Please make it as quick and painless as you can manage. I don't want the last memory in Lea's heart to be painful."

Rather then reply (what in the worlds was wrong with Isa?) Sora simply summoned his Keyblade and took position in front of the cage. These Heartless were fast and agile, out in the open. But if he could strike right as Isa opened the door, right as it came out... then it would hopefully be over before they knew it.

"Whenever."

Isa nodded. "Get ready." With that, he opened the door, and the Red Nocturne shot out towards Sora, ignoring Isa altogether. Isa didn't want to watch, knowing it was a creature made from Lea's heart that was about to be destroyed, but he owed it to Lea not to look away. So he didn't.

The fight was over before it had gotten started. As the Red Nocturne flew at him, Sora leapt and swung with the Keyblade. Seconds later, it vanished in a puff of Darkness and a glowing heart spiraled up and away. Isa flinched just a bit as the Heartless was torn apart, but then his attention was drawn to the heart itself. He watched it as it twisted through the air and out through the ceiling, glowing softly and sparkling a bit. No wonder Kingdom Hearts had been so beautiful, if it was made up of so many of those.

Isa wondered where it was going to go. Somewhere nice, he hoped. Maybe even somewhere his own could follow. But he wouldn't hold his breath. A heart as steeped in Darkness as his own probably couldn't go to the same place as a heart like Lea's.

Isa suddenly felt overwhelmed. He sat down hard in the chair that had been left against the wall in the room, resting his head in his hands for just a moment. It was done. Lea's heart was free, and Isa's duty to him was complete. That was it.

With a thought, Sora dismissed his Keyblade. Then he stood there awkwardly for a minute, not sure if that was everything or if there was something else Isa had needed. Especially since he seemed so upset over a Heartless dying. No... Upset wasn't the right word. Shaken? That was probably closer. Or maybe _relieved_.

"Isa, you okay?"

Isa let his hands drop from his face, his expression flat. "I'm fine. I'm just glad Lea can rest now."

He looked up at Sora then. "You should say hello to the others. They'll be glad to see you. And I...need a little time alone. If you don't mind."

Isa sure wasn't _acting _fine. Didn't look it, either. But if he didn't want to tell Sora... well, he couldn't exactly force Isa to tell him what was wrong. That hadn't worked on Isa as long as Sora had known him. "That was actually the whole reason I originally came here, so I'll go do that. But if you need anymore help, just holler."

He started to leave, but before he could Isa spoke up again.

"...and thank you. For everything."

Sora paused and looked at Isa, halfway through the doorway. Then he grinned. One of those wholehearted, shining grins he always gave people. "You're welcome, Isa."

And with that, he was gone.

Sora's smile was so bright, Isa couldn't help but smile a bit, too. He was glad he'd met Sora. He'd already helped Isa, more than the boy would probably ever know. But Isa wouldn't be calling on him for help again.

Isa stood. There was one last thing he needed to do. He collected his claymore and started out of the room, up into the castle itself. Up to where it had all started.

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The click of Isa's shoes echoed in the silence of the old castle. Here he was again; come back to the site of his boyhood exploits, those long years ago. Isa stopped in his trek to look across the pathway at the great door into the castle at Hollow Bastion. How he and Lea had wondered what was in this castle; wondered enough to risk life and limb just for a glance. But back then, they hadn't known any better. Back then there had been no such thing as real risk. No such thing as real danger.

Well. They had learned. The castle back then had contained the same as it did now; only monsters and broken dreams.

He hadn't been back to this part of the castle in ten years; not to this spot at least. Granted, for eight of those years Isa had been a castaway. He couldn't have returned, even if he'd wanted to. But now he'd come back. Now that everything was done.

Isa came to a stop at the spot he had been avoiding since the day his childhood had ended in pain and shadows. Such an innocuous-looking spot; a few feet back onto the courtyard from the arch that marked the top of the old stairs leading to the castle. The stones were cracked now; in this place where the cataclysm had been so great as to make the water flow up instead of down.

Isa knelt to touch the paving stones. There was nothing strange about them, nothing to indicate that two innocent lives had been destroyed on this spot. That wouldn't do. He stood back up, looking at the claymore he'd carried all this way. It had served him well for a long time. But Isa didn't need it anymore.

He raised his arm back, then slammed the end of the claymore into the stone as hard as he could. It sunk in far enough that even _he _would have some trouble pulling it back out. But that was fine; Isa had no intention of ever removing it. It would stay here until the stones crumbled around it. The motif at the end of the claymore stuck out of the stones a bit, resembling a setting sun. It was appropriate, Isa thought.

Isa reached into his pocket. From within it he drew an old, worn, yellow scarf. It was the only thing of Lea's he still had that was whole; it had been his reminder of his friend, and of his failure. Isa lifted the scarf to his nose and inhaled; the scent had all but faded from the fabric. He sighed softly; it _had _been ten years, after all. It couldn't be helped. Isa tied two corners to the handle of the Claymore; then he stepped back, watching the scarf snap in the breeze like a flag. This would be a fitting memorial to the two boys who had died on this spot. The two foolish boys who would never have graves.

_In people's memories, I can live forever._

Well, maybe that was enough to satisfy Lea. But it wasn't enough for Isa. And it never would be. He couldn't bear it, being the only one who remembered the smiling boy who'd shared his dreams with Isa when they were young. He wouldn't trade those memories away for anything, though; not those, nor the memories of the laughing, sharp-edged man who'd shared his life for so brief a time. The man who'd died in his place, who should have lived.

Isa watched his impromptu flag flap in the wind for a few minutes longer. Then he took a deep breath, letting it out slowly, and turned away, towards what had once been the steps. Now it simply dropped off, the bottom so far off Isa couldn't see it through the fog.

_You... have fun living the rest of your sad little life knowing... __**you're all alone...**_

...there was some truth in that. Isa stood at the edge of the stone, gazing out at the rising falls. The Organization was gone, and he'd freed Lea's heart. He'd done his duty, and he was tired. So tired. Of everyone who'd been touched by the Heartless before his home had fallen, Isa was the only one left.

The loose end.

That story was meant to be finished. Isa didn't want to be the only one left who knew it. It was too heavy a burden for one person to carry. He knew the littles cared about him, but they didn't understand and they couldn't help him. He hoped they wouldn't be too angry at him; that they'd understand. But he wanted the story that started ten years ago to be finished. The Isa he had been had died that day, anyway. He wanted to let him rest.

Isa took a single step forward, and committed himself to gravity.


	17. Step Forward

A/N: Here we are, the last chapter! A short chapter to end the story, to match the short chapter that opened it. Enjoy!

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_Where am I?_

His eyes fluttered open. The red-headed man found himself splayed on the stone ground, in front of a large castle. He cautiously got to his feet, eyeing his surroundings suspiciously.

_Uh, maybe more importantly... __**who**__ am I?_

Well, that was a stupid question.

_My name is Lea._

Lea wandered into the castle, his mind buzzing with thoughts. He was overwhelmed with a feeling of dread as his last memory as Axel came rushing back into his head.

Isa. Was he alright? Did they manage to stop the Organization? Vague pieces of memory were fluttering back, bit by bit. He remembered seeing Isa again after his death while confronting Xigbar... but, well... okay, that didn't make much sense. Then again, he'd believe anything after having his heart restored.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed since then- but he needed to find Isa right away.

Because he was... _ecstatic_. He had... a heart again.

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It didn't take long for Sora to walk from the castle ruins to the Cid's house. He could have just popped up to the Gummi and then landed at it, but the walk was nice. Besides, he wasn't in a huge hurry to get back on the Gummi. It was odd, how it always seemed to know where he was needed. If he got back on board it might decide he was needed elsewhere, and he didn't want to take that risk. He didn't spare a second thought to leaving Isa by himself, even with him acting as oddly as he had been.

Sora walked across the courtyard and, as per usual, just burst right in through the front door, interrupting lunch. "Hey guys!" He greeted with a grin. "How're you guys?"

Leon blinked, standing up as the Keybearer walked in the door. "Sora! What are you doing here?" As surprised as he was to see the teen, Leon didn't mind him interrupting lunch one bit. Maybe Sora'd be able to do something about Isa; he was the Keybearer, right? ...Leon didn't care how stupid that sounded in his mind.

Sora's grin turned into a smile. "Got another letter from the King, so I wanted to come say hi before things got hectic. Though the Gummi did drop me off over at the castle."

Then he paused, and the smile turned into a slight frown. Or maybe more of a worried look. "D'you know what's up with Isa? He was acting weird when I was over there. I knew he was shaken up after what went down in the World That Never Was, but..." He hadn't thought it had been that bad. Isa had seemed... mostly okay, when he had noticed him talking with Riku on Destiny Islands. Granted it had been a while since then, but even so. It had looked like Isa was recovering.

But Leon's face immediately fell, a look of horror spreading over his features. Aerith too had shot to her feet, looking terrified, while Cid and Yuffie had frozen. Leon grabbed Sora by the shoulders then, not quite yelling, but very nearly.

"Y-you saw Isa at the castle? Did you kill the Heartless?" Leon shook Sora a bit. "You left him by himself?"

"Um... yes? He- he said he wanted to be alone for a bit... " Apparently this wasn't the answer they were hoping for.

Actually, judging from their reactions, they had probably been _dreading _this answer. Fantastic. Now all someone needed to do was tell him he'd accidentally opened the Keyhole of Darkness, and today's recipe of Straight to Hell would be just about complete.

Leon's breath caught in his throat, and he had to bite his tongue to keep from screaming at Sora. _Idiot. _No, he didn't know. How could he know. Cid and Yuffie were already in motion, and Leon released Sora roughly.

"We need to find him. He's probably going to try to kill himself." He could have already done it. He might be-

"Split up," he ordered as he walked out the door, although to be truthful it didn't need to be said. "Keep in radio contact. _We need to find him."_

But his fears were already telling him it was too late. It took so long to walk from the castle to the house that- No, don't think about that. Don't think about it.

Leon wished he'd never clapped eyes on Axel.

Sora stood there in confusion as the others headed out as fast as they could to find Isa before it was too late, leaving behind a Keyblade Bearer who was confused as hell.

He was having trouble understanding the severity of the situation. Isa was apparently suicidal (in hindsight, he vaguely remembered Aerith and Leon explaining that to him after his fight with Xaldin) and, in Leon's words, was probably going to try and off himself. To anyone else, the issue here likely would have been plain as day.

But 'anyone else' wasn't 'Sora.' They weren't a kid that hadn't, until recently, had to deal with the prospect of death in any form. They also weren't a kid that had trouble grasping the severity of suicide because he himself had been, for however briefly, _suicidal_.

He didn't really remember it, that day deep in the castle of Hollow Bastion after he had fought Riku. He had been told that Kairi would never wake up unless her heart, which resided in him, was released. But in doing so the Keyhole to Darkness would be opened. Save the worlds, or save Kairi.

The choice hadn't been a hard one to make.

Sora remembered picking up the twisted Keyblade and tossing his own to Donald. He remembered grinning, the horrified looks on his friends' faces as he impaled himself, and then... nothing. Nothing but darkness up until Kairi had brought him back.

Suicide was something to be avoided, yes, because of that whole dying thing. But sometimes things had to be done. Sometimes there just wasn't a choice. Sora had killed himself without a second thought, all because it was what needed to be done to save the person he cared about. He couldn't make, or had difficulty making, the connection with suicide being a serious thing because he'd done it so casually, on less then a whim.

Yes, it ended with a person someone cared about being _dead_. But Sora had a pretty poor grasp on 'death' as well, so that held only _slightly _more weight to it. It was just something that happened sometimes.

He could, vaguely, understand _why _it was horrible and a thing to be prevented. But he couldn't grasp the reasoning behind it. It was totally foreign to him.

And so while the rest of the household ran out, frantically searching for Isa so they could save him from himself, Sora stood there in the middle of the room. Blinking and confused, knowing _something _incredibly serious was happening around him, but unable to understand _what_.

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After investigating the castle, Lea decided that there were far too many heartless unscathed for Isa to have been around. That guy was pretty ruthless...

He wandered back outside, a makeshift flag marking the spot he'd woken up on. Isa's claymore- so he must have been here recently. Lea rushed down the steps, only to find himself greeted by a very unwelcome picture.

He'd never moved faster in his life.

"_ISA!_"

Lea nearly stumbled, reaching his hand out over the ledge, barely grabbing the man's wrist in time.

"What the hell are you doing?" he gripped the ground, yanking Isa up and over the edge. He wasn't sure where he found the strength to lift Isa's weight, but that wasn't really important. This was not exactly what he imagined- the first thing he found his heart doing, racing with panic and rage. He flung the blue haired man to the ground, once he'd dragged him a safe distance from the cliff. The redhead stalked towards Isa, who still maintained a _thoroughly _startled expression.

It looked like he'd just seen a ghost.

"Well? Answer me!" Lea leaned in, grabbing Isa by the collar. "What the hell did I just see? Were you just going to give up- Really? You- you really are an idiot!"

This was all way too much. The redhead found himself collapsing to his knees on top of Isa, completely breaking down. He had his heart back, and he knew it was because of this man. But what the hell had just happened? Did he really just save this man _twice?_

"Isa- how did I end up falling in love with such a moron. I don't know what you did- or what you were just going to do- but- but I'm here somehow," he wrapped his arms around Isa, holding on for dear life.

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Isa had closed his eyes, letting gravity take hold of him. This was alright. He was ready to be done.

But then an impossible voice, shouting his name, and he jerked to a stop, dangling by his wrist. Isa's head snapped up; those impossible green eyes stared back at him, a voice he thought he'd never hear again screaming something, but he couldn't pay attention to the words. How-

Isa was speechless. Somehow, he was being hauled back up by what must be a ghost. There was no other explanation, but- Lea was solid enough to be manhandling him across the paving stones. Isa was too startled, too overwhelmed to resist. He hit the ground hard, turning to stare up at the furious redhead. Words still wouldn't come; his mind was paralyzed.

He was hauled up to his knees by his collar, and could do nothing but stare slack-jawed while Lea screamed in his face. Then Lea wrapped his arms tight around Isa, enveloping him, and his brain started to click back into gear.

"How-...?" was the only word he could get out. This was impossible. Yes, Isa had spent ten years thinking Lea was dead. But he hadn't actually _seen _him die, nor had he ever seen a body. It hadn't been difficult to accept Axel when Isa saw him in front of him; it had just been the fulfillment of years of secretly hoping that he was alive somewhere. But this time, Isa had seen it happen, had held Lea in his arms as he faded away. It wasn't possible. This couldn't be happening.

But Isa couldn't deny the warmth surrounding him now. It was real. Lea was really there.

Isa's arms came up to wrap around Lea's back. What had he almost done...? Isa had felt so hopeless, so lost. But he- he would have missed Lea. Left him behind. And Isa would still have been alone.

Isa had tried so hard not to feel Lea's loss. He couldn't deal with it. He'd just pushed it down, denied it, tried to numb himself. But now all the pain he'd been suppressing was bubbling up, forcing its way out of him. Isa hung his head, pressing it into Lea's chest. His fingers clutched into the fabric of the redhead's coat hard enough to audibly strain the fabric.

"Lea...!" Isa's voice strangled silent, and he couldn't get another word out through the wracking sobs that shook him. Once they started, he couldn't stop them.

And just this once, he didn't want to.

Lea held on tight. He didn't know how to process anything at the moment. He knew he was angry, oh was he ever. But the relief that he'd come in just in time, well, that was good enough for now. It's not like he'd really expected to have all these extra chances anyway, so why would Isa have expected the same?

Right now he was just happy it was all over. This was the moment they'd been waiting for.

"I'm here, it's okay," Lea finally said, his fingers tangled in blue hair. Yeah, it was all over. They could finally _breathe_.

Somehow, Isa managed to get ahold of himself. He didn't raise his head, though, keeping his forehead pressed into Lea's chest. He could feel the redhead's heart hammering under his ribs. This was...some kind of miracle. Maybe it was all a dream? Or maybe Isa was already dead, too. But he thought, if that were the case, it shouldn't feel so warm.

He didn't know how Lea could be here now. But if he was really here, this was where Isa wanted to be, too.

"_How?_" Isa's voice was almost a whisper. "I saw you die. So how-?"

The redhead just smiled, breaking out into laughter.

"Jeez, I don't know! But I definitely feel alive, heh. More than ever." He pulled away from Isa, flopping back into a lazy slouch. His grin faded almost immediately though, as his gaze drifted over to the cliff's edge.

_Was he really going to..._

He immediately snapped back to Isa, once he realized he had a million questions to ask.

"W-Wait, so what happened with Sora and the Organization and and... Well I mean, how did you take down Xigbar? And Xemnas? Oh man, I can't believe you did it! And look, look Isa," he grabbed Isa's shoulders, his grin returning as he nearly tackled the man in front of him. "I never thought I'd have a heart again! You did it. Hey, we did it!"

Isa barely managed to stay upright, nearly knocked over by Lea's enthusiasm. A smile started its way onto his face, followed by a single chuckle, then a laugh- Isa stopped halfway through the laugh, looking like he'd been startled by the sound that came out of him. He hadn't laughed since- since he'd lost Lea. How long had it been now? Months, at least. The time all ran together in his mind.

This was all so surreal. Even more so than when he had first met Lea again. He had been about to take his own life; he had been completely serious about it, had thought about it and then planned it for weeks, maybe even months. The only reason he'd waited was that he couldn't leave Lea's heart still trapped as a Heartless somewher-

Isa's eyes widened, and he grabbed Lea's shoulders back. "Your Heartless. I had Sora kill your Heartless with his Keyblade...!" That must have been it. It...must have somehow restored him. The timing was too perfect.

So then, this really was _his_ Lea. Really back, for good. Happy and smiling and boisterous.

"My Heartless? Uh, how did you... Wait what does that-," Isa just wasn't making any sense. But Lea suddenly found himself wrapped in Isa's arms again.

"...I missed you more than I could bear." Isa muttered into his neck.

Then it suddenly hit him-

"W-wait, how long have I been gone? I mean I feel like a lot of time has passed and I have these random memories but it doesn't make much sense... Then again I guess going from a Nobody back to a _Somebody _doesn't make much sense either," he let out a long sigh. It didn't matter to him either way. He had his heart back and he had Isa, that was all he really wanted. But he still wanted to catch up on what he'd missed, and maybe what it meant for him now that he had a heart and no Nobodies hunting him down.

"...Hey I have an idea! Let's go!" Lea didn't feel like sticking around in this depressing place. He wanted to put the insanity behind him for just a moment. He got to his feet, tugging on Isa's arm. He was hoping the man would read his mind, because there was only one thing this situation called for.

Just Lea and Isa.

_...and ice cream._

Isa blinked as he was tugged to his feet. "Where are we going?"

"'_Where are we going?'_ C'mon Isa, we gotta celebrate somehow!"

Lea was so excited, more excited than Isa had ever seen him in his days as a Nobody. But it was about the same as his base level of enthusiasm when they were children. He really must have been fully resto-

Isa stopped when they were about to pass his claymore. "Wait." He frowned, looking at it and the scarf for a minute. Then he gently tugged his arm free of Lea's.

He'd need both hands to wrestle the sword free of the ground.

It took a minute of wrenching at it, but finally the claymore popped free of the stones. Isa gave it a little, experimental swing. Not damaged, then.

"I'll need this." Isa paused, then untied the scarf from the handle. He contemplated it for a moment, then, he held it out to Lea.

"...do you want this back?"

Lea just stepped back as the man wrenched his makeshift memorial out of the ground. It was kind of sweet, but a little batty too... Isa had been through a lot though, a real lot... Lea just shrugged it off as he reached out for the scarf he was being handed.

"Heh, well, I don't see why not," he shook out the yellow rag. Man, did he look like a dork when he was a kid. ...Well, it seemed cool at the time. "I don't know, it doesn't really go with this depressing coat does it?" he laughed, trying on the scarf for the hell of it. "I should probably find a change of clothes soon, I don't think I'm gonna be portal hopping anytime soon. Besides, black isn't really my color, yeah?"

He paced for a moment around the broken stone, finally reaching out for Isa's hand. "Hey, I think it's about time to leave this place behind. Some things just aren't worth remembering, y'know?

"So c'mon c'mon, lets go make some good memories. I'm starving for some ice cream, Isaaaa!" he yanked on the bluehaired man's arm, impatient to get moving.

Isa squeezed Lea's hand. His words gave Isa pause, though, and he stayed right where he was for a few moments.

Leave this place behind? In his mind, the words meant more than just physically going somewhere else. The memories of what had happened here had consumed him for so long. _Could _he leave them behind?

Isa didn't know the answer to that question. But he was willing to try. For Lea. And for himself.

A soft smile appeared on Isa's face, and he nodded, starting to walk. "Yes. Let's."

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A/N: And that's it! Thank you to everyone who's been reading along all this time. I hope the ending was satisfying. :)

This story is finished, but I'm not totally done playing in this world, so I'm likely to post up some short stories set within this AU sometime in the near future. If you enjoyed this, please keep an eye out for those.

It's always been my ambition to write a long fanfic, so thank you to my friends, who helped make it possible, and to my readers. :D


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